Dance with the Devil
by ghost company
Summary: Vader had everything planned out. At first he had thought that it was all over. He had no one left to live for but himself. That all changed a few years ago. Now he's playing a deadly game with his master. However, when the force throws in another variable, will Vader be able to complete his plans and more importantly who will he be when it's all done? Anakin, or Vader?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone. Well, I'm back with another story. For those of you waiting on any of my others, I have not abandoned them, but they are on hold as I clean up some plot issues. Anyway, I'm posting this, to test the waters. If people like it than great, I'll continue. If not well, this will be an interesting 1 shot. With that noted, there are some things to understand:**

 **1\. This takes place as the remnants of the Covenant military have fallen under the Arbiters Command, and made peace with humanity.**

 **2\. The events of Halo 4 and 5 did happen. However, they resulted in Cortana's death before she could turn the guardians on humanity. (For those of you who have played the game, I'm talking about the end cut scene, everything else happened.)**

 **3\. Also, the Star Wars is AU, and takes place between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.**

 **With that out of the way, sit back, read, enjoy, and please review. Constructive critism is welcome. So without further ado, I give you chapter 1.**

* * *

Darth Vader stood at the back of the Executor's bridge with his arms crossed, silently observing the scene before him. Striding up and down the bridge, Admiral Piett was barking out orders to direct the battle raging before them. Outside the viewport, explosions could be seen as Death Squadron, Vader's personal fleet of ships, engaged the Rebel fleet.

"The Avenger needs to tighten up. I said to make the gap tempting, not make it big enough to put the damn Death Star through. Bring the Subjugator up twenty degrees and take out that cruiser in front of them. Redirect the Devastator to help. I want it dead… Yesterday!" he ordered, "Bring the Executor forward and get me a tractor beam lock on that lead ship. Tell commander Appo to prepare the men. When we catch them, I want him ready for boarding action. Redirect the second bomber wing. Tell them to target the hyperdrives on those frigates moving on the Stalker and Relentless, and someone get those damn X-Wing squadrons off our forward deflector shields."

There was a chorus of "yes sir"s as the bridge crew milled around, fulfilling their tasks. Quietly, Vader reached into the force. Silently he started to direct his attention toward the Admiral, trying to get a true sense of how he was doing. Not much to his surprise, Admiral Piett kept them hidden behind a mental shield. It was a little known fact that strong minded people (such as the Admiral) could be trained to resist attempts to get into their head. Now, Vader was powerful enough that if he wanted to he could easily get around them, and had they been airtight, he might have. However, the emotions leaking through told him what he needed to know.

Despite his confident exterior, he was nervous. Vader was sure that if he got through the shields, he would find that the Admiral was truly terrified. He was losing this battle, and he knew it. Yes the fleet was still mostly intact, but the Rebel fleet was breaking away and buying the time it needed to find a safe, blind jump. However, the Admiral was determined, too. He had lost the fleet at once at Hoth a year and a half ago and was determined to catch it this time, and his plan had been flawless. It was some of the other Captains that had caused issues, and they had better pray that the Admiral dismisses them before he does.

"Admiral. We won't be needing that flagship. Destroy it," Darth Vader ordered.

The Admiral started to protest, "But my lord-"

"I said destroy them. It will do nothing against my objective," he snapped.

"Yes my lord," replied the visibly pale Admiral, before turning to his officers, "Redirect all available bombers to target the lead Calamari Cruiser. Bring the Chimerea and the Devastator forward. Have the rest of the fleet tighten the noose. Bring the Executor around forty-five degrees portside to give them cover."

 _They want to escape, they can do it over our dead bodies,_ Admiral Piett thought in his head.

Sensing the thought, Darth Vader smirked under his helmet. He wouldn't tell the Admiral this, but no matter what the outcome of this battle, the man didn't have to worry about his life. The Admiral was just the man he had been looking for.

True to their unspoken predictions, the rebel fleet escaped, though not unscathed. There was a debris field made up of three cruisers and four frigates. Mixed with them were the remains of the Conquest and the Death's Head. One had been destroyed when it's reactor was ruptured and the other had been suffered life support failure and was currently being evacuated. At least one other ship had a damaged hyperdrive and another two were missing their shields while the rest of the fleet had numerous other issues stemming from the battle.

Locking eyes with the Admiral, Darth Vader just stared for a second as he let the fear set into the Admiral.

"Deploy probes and find that fleet, Admiral," he ordered.

Then, much to Admiral Piett surprise, Darth Vader simply turned on his heel and stalked out of the bridge with orders not to disturb him.

 **(Home One: somewhere in hyperspace)**

The blast doors to the bridge hissed open as Mon Mothma entered with Princess Leia right behind her.

"How bad is it?" Asked Mon Mothma as she approached Admiral Akbar.

"Not good. We lost three of our cruisers and four frigates. The Home One and Redemption both took extensive damage, though we were able to draw a lot of the fire off the Redemption when we engaged the Executor. Simply put, we can't have that happen again," he answered.

Mothma sighed as she chose her next words. This had been a close one, and she knew it. The Imperial Fleet had ambushed them deep in the outer rim as they were planning their next attack, and had come closer than they probably knew to destroying the fleet.

"It is dangerous to have the fleet all go to the same place after a battle. You know this. That was one of the first things that we agreed on," she stated quietly.

"I know, but we didn't have much choice. Whomever Vader has for an Admiral was smart. He couldn't stop us so he forced all to exit the same way. Even if we dropped out at separate points, they could still follow our trajectory and with the state of some of our ships they would be sitting ducks," the Admiral answered.

"I see. However, we still need to separate as soon as we can," she pressed.

"Yes. When we come out of hyperspace, we will stay just long enough for me to accurately assess what the state the fleet is in, then we will be separating," Admiral Akbar answered.

It had long since been decided, that the fleet couldn't stand up face to face with the Imperial Fleet and as such they had a policy of temporarily breaking up directly after a battle or other scenario where it was likely that the Empire might be able to track their fleet and attack it on their terms.

"Speaking of location, where exactly did they force us to go?" Leia asked.

Considering the Empire had forced them in this direction, she was almost scared to know the answer.

"Truth be told, I don't know," Admiral Akbar answered, "I gave the fleet a direction heading, but was forced to leave before I could nail down a planet. All I know is that we're going even further out into the outer rim."

Both women could see the worry in the Admiral's aquatic eyes.

"I was watching that battle, and something wasn't right," Leia spoke up, "We shouldn't have won that battle. That was Vader's fleet. It was last over Kuat, along with about thirty other ships. Why did he only bring his core fleet of fifteen when he could've easily brought the others with him?"

Admiral Akbar's face formed into what resembled a frown. However, Mon Mothma spoke up first.

"It was either a test or a message. If it was a test, than I suspect that we just cost the attacking Admiral both his rank and life. If it is a message, than I imagine something else is up. He's been out to crush the fleet. Perhaps this is a message that whether we live or die is based solely on him," she answered, "In that case we need to proceed with extreme caution."

Leia momentarily felt a stab of guilt at the thought of causing someone else's death. However, all sympathy was lost as she was reminded of what they did to Alderaan. In light of that, she wasn't all too sorry about the death of an Imperial officer or two. What worried her was what the implications of the second idea were. Vader was many things, decisive being one of them. If he let the fleet go, than he had bigger plans, and that was a serious problem.

The deck fell silent as the weight of their situation. With an inward sigh, Leia walked off the bridge to find Luke. They had plans that needed ironed out in regards to their own mission.

For the next week, the battered fleet traveled through hyperspace, unaware of where they would end up at. Seeing as the Home One's navigation and communications systems were damaged, they couldn't safely pull out of hyperspace until the computer's predetermined destination.

On day seven, the navigational computer chimed, informing Admiral Ackbar that they were exiting hyperspace.

 **(UNSC Infinity: high orbit over Harvest)**

"Sir, the rest of the fleet is in orbit, and we are ready to proceed… hold on…" Roland stated as his holographic face turned into a frown, "I've got eight unidentified ships entering the system."

"How close?" Admiral Hood asked.

"Very, we'll be in visual range when they arrive. Here's the catch. Their not coming through slipspace," Roland answered.

Admiral Hood's mind raced as he processed the situation.

"Sounds like we have a first contact scenario," he stated, "Have the fleet raise shields, and standby. Have the Arbiter do the same."

"Yes sir."

There was a tense moment of silence as the crew quietly carried out their orders. Next to him, Captain Lasky was quietly issuing orders to the ship. Two minutes later eight unknown ships suddenly burst into the system.

"Sir, the ships are here," Roland stated.

"I see that," the Admiral half mumbled.

He was already staring intensely at the newcomers. The ships were all of varying shape, but held a similar organic design. However, he was prevented from getting too good of a look as the ships immediately turned and put considerable distance between them and his fleet.

"Report," he commanded.

This time it was Captain Lasky that spoke, "There's eight ships of varying tonnage, though nothing bigger than a cruiser. Scans show that they are warships. However, I suspect that they don't hold too much threat."

"Why?" Admiral Hood asked.

This time he was testing the Captain to see how sound his reasoning was. It was no secret that the Admiral was near retirement, or death, whichever happened to come first. What also wasn't a secret was the fact that he was grooming Lasky to replace him. Between Requiem and the Genesis Crisis, he had more than proven himself competent as an Admiral.

"We are numerically superior by at least 12 to 1. On top of that, their ships are heavily damaged. Several of them have major hull breaches and power systems are erratically fluctuating. A few are missing shields, their armor is quite thin, and at least four of the ships seem to be holding together by sheer willpower alone," Captain Lasky answered.

"I see. Just don't underestimate an opponent you don't know. That's what happened here," he stated as he gestured to the planet.

"Yes sir."

"Good. Let's hail them and see who they are."

 **(SSD Executor: Kuat Drive Yards repair dock)**

Vader leaned his head back as his helmet lifted off. Closing his eyes he ignored the hissing as his suit depressurized. It was inside this five by five sphere that he touched freedom. It was here that he got precious time to see things with his own eyes. It was here that he almost became human again… key word: "almost". He lost his humanity twenty years ago and had paid the price. When Obi Wan left him alive, he gave Anakin the fate worse than death. After that he had thought that his life was over, that he had nothing left. Because of this he had determined dive as far into the darkside as his cyborg body would let him, and hopefully gain the throne, no matter the cost. Things changed when he met Leia over Tatooine. He could sense their relation in the force almost instantly. It was then that things flipped upside down. He suddenly had another reason to live. It was on that force forsaken Death Star he began quietly putting the final touches on his plans, and it was all he could do not to strangle Tarkin when he turned the Death Star on Alderaan. If Vader had one vice, it was family.

Closing his eyes, he opened himself up to the force. Immediately the images rushed forward: the raid on the temple, various Jedi he had killed, the murder of the Separatist leaders, and the most painful, his confrontation with Padme and Obi Wan.

 _You underestimate my power._

 _I hate you!_

 _Then I will do what I must_

 _I hate you!_

 _You underestimate my power._

 _I hate you!_

 _You were the chosen one! It was said you'd destroy the Sith, not join them._

 _I hate you!_

The words pounded through his head, with the 'I hate you' coming in almost a whisper. Each time he those words poured out, he felt the darkside flown through him. Now, though, he questioned who he really hated. At the time it was Obi Wan, but not as much anymore. Now he hated Sidious, that much was clear. Sidious knew and even encouraged it within certain boundaries. The only thing that burned stronger was his hate for the Jedi that forced him into this position, and if he was honest with himself he knew deep down that Obi Wan had come into the picture too late to make a difference. Padme would've died either way, Sidious would've seen to it.

For the next several hours he sat and let the emotions flow through him, processing and using each memory and emotion as it rushed by. As time wore on, he began to think of his encounter with Luke. He had every intention of taking his son as his apprentice. However, the more and more he thought of his encounter with Luke, the worse he felt. He needed to turn Luke, there was no way around that. However, the thought of Luke having to repeat his mistakes made his stomach turn.

 _But then again if that's what it takes to kill the Emperor, so be it. You're the master now, you can put a leash on his actions_ , he resolved to himself.

Shifting positions he reached back into the force, trying to get a read on the future. That's when it hit him. The vision was quick, clear. Ships of various design advanced in attack formation, their different weapons blasting away. He immediately recognized the Executor, and the other Imperial ships. What he noticed next was the Rebel fleet. However what truly intrigued him was the newcomers. There were two sets of them. The first set was all blocky and geometrical in their ship design, while the others were more organic like the Rebel fleet. However, they were considerably larger numerically and in size.

As the ships were racing forward, the Executor suddenly stopped. As it fell behind, it began to lean downward, as explosions soon began to rip apart the ship. Within seconds, the rest of the fleet disappeared into oblivion as the Executor atomized. Then just like that it was gone. He found himself shaken, and staring at the same blinding white walls he had been in off and on for the past week.

Realizing his time to act had come, Vader clenched his jaw as he pressed the button to open the chamber. There was a wine as the machines in the chamber began replacing his helmet. He winced in pain as the helmet was sealed in place. Living in the suit was as the same living hell it was twenty years ago. However, now he knew how to channel his pain and use it to further his strength.

Stepping out of the chamber, he immediately sent a targeted force blast through the area. After he was sure that any listening devices were disabled, he pulled out a com link. Being inside his armored suit, it had been protected from the blast. Upon dialing in the frequency, he was immediately greeted by an Imperial officer.

"Yes my Lord?" asked the Commander as he quickly bowed his head.

It was clear, he was not expecting Darth Vader.

"Have you found the information I require," Vader demanded.

Despite being the most secure link in the world, Vader knew the power of Imperial Intelligence and wasn't about to take chances with stating his demands out loud.

"N-no sir. I have not been able to find a place outside the confines of the Empire," the man stated as he visibly paled.

Darth Vader had made the threat of non success by the time limit quite clear. However, he had not made the time limit in question clear. Vader quietly clenched his fists as the black eyes of the suit bored into the man's soul.

"I see. I gave you ample time to do so, and yet you failed," Vader growled.

As he raised his hand, the Commander began gasping for air as an invisible hand began to clench his throat. Then with an audible crack, the man went limp. Letting go, Vader watched as the dead officer dropped to the floor. Success or not, there could be no witnesses.

Upon clicking off the comm link, Vader exited his chambers and made a beeline for the bridge. As he strided down the halls, he barely noticed the grey walls tick by or the officers and crewmen quickly move to the side for him. Instead, his mind raced as he began to reevaluate his plan. Without the removal of his suit possible, he would have to rely on Luke. That was as inherently dangerous as it was impractical. He wasn't sure he would have the time, before the Emperor took over the boy's training or killed both of them. Luke was powerful, but was in need of training… real training, not Jedi training, and he would need it fast.

Entering the bridge, he was immediately met by Admiral Piett. After a quick bow, the Admiral went back to work overseeing repair to the fleet. If he had learned anything on the Executor, it was that Vader hated inefficiency, or officers who graveled to much.

"Admiral, what is the status on the probes?" he asked.

This stopped the admiral mid stride as he turned to face Darth Vader.

"We've checked all of the systems along their trajectory. There were relatively few. We are expanding the search based off that. I'm still waiting for updated reports for the day," he quickly answered.

"Have you expanded deeper into the rim?" Vader quizzed as he followed his hunch.

"We've gone clear to the edge of the galaxy sir. Their not there," the Admiral answered.

Despite the Admiral's level tone, Vader could sense the uneasiness building inside the man.

Vader paused as he considered what he was about to ask.

"Send them out further. There is another Galaxy nearby. I know that for sure. Redirect some of the probes to search the outer planets and possible entry points," he ordered.

"Sir?" asked the dumbstruck Admiral.

Admiral Piett had never taken Vader as an explorer. That job typically went to Admiral Thrawn.

"You heard me, Admiral. Finally, keep this operation inside this bridge. No one outside of this bridge is to know of your search," he ordered, adding an edge of steel to his voice.

"Yes my Lord," Admiral Piett answered crisply.

"That is all."

With the dismissal, Admiral Piett began issuing orders to the men controlling the probes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone. So, I decided to do a second chapter. Thank you to everyone who is followed of favorited this story, and especially thank you to the two that review. I love to here what people think. In the mean time sit back and please remember to review.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you Chapter 2:**

* * *

 **(UNSC Infinity: Main Hangar)**

Admiral Hood straightened his suit as he waited for the foreign shuttle. Standing at either side of him was Captain Lasky and the Arbiter. Due to issues with the communications systems on the other fleet, it had taken the Admiral a half hour to get a hold of the other fleet. During this time, the Arbiter flew from his flagship, Shadow of Intent, to the Infinity. Behind them and off to the sides was a squad of Spartan Vs, which were acting as security.

When they spoke on the comm, no one was surprised at the non humans. They had expected as much. However, what caught them off guard was the humans in the group. However, right now the Admiral had more pressing topics then xenology.

His musings were interrupted as a shuttle, not much bigger than a Pelican, touched down in the hanger. As the ramp dropped, he was met by three humans. He recognized the taller woman with short hair, but not the other, younger woman and younger man that were with her.

Stepping forward Admiral Hood cleared his throat before speaking, "On behalf of everyone here, welcome on board the Infinity. I'm Admiral Hood, and to my left is Captain Lasky and to the right is the Arbiter."

Both of the men gave a nod as the Admiral introduced them.

The tall woman gave a nod to each person before speaking, "Our thanks. I believe you're the one I talked to earlier. On behalf of the Alliance I am Mon Mothma. With me is Princess Leia Organa and Commander Luke Skywalker."

 _Commander? The kid's hardly twenty,_ Captain Lasky thought with a frown.

"Welcome. If you'll follow me, we can begin," Admiral Hood stated as he motioned for them to join him.

With a nod, the group followed. Hanging back, Luke quietly observed the group. Since he was acting as "security" he silently observed everyone, with his mechanical right hand relaxing not far from his lightsaber. He quickly decided that if things went south, he would need to deal with the Arbiter first. However, looking at the Spartans, he wasn't too sure. The Spartans looked more nimble and Luke had learned that nimble ones were the most dangerous. Not fully sure of the capabilities of anyone, he mentally drew up a plan and prayed that no one did anything brash. However, given who was here, he wasn't too worried about that happening.

As it was, he definitely didn't want a fight, let alone a full blown battle. His gut and his head both told them that they wouldn't make it out alive. These peoples ships were massive, and what scans they could get showed that they packed a serious punch. Heck, the purple set of ships had multiple ships that were definitely bigger than the Executor. None sported laser tech, but at least the purple ones used plasma. The, others seemed to have taken the challenge to shatter every expectation and every preconceived idea when it came to slug weapons. However, Luke did notice that they seemed to be owned by two separate factions. That had him curious. Putting it in the back of his head, he forced his head back on to the task at hand.

After walking through a series of wide hallways, they were ushered into a large conference room. On the right hand was a glass faced cabinet with various bottles.

"Can I offer any of you a drink?" Captain Lasky asked as he poured himself a small glass of wine.

Everyone said no, with the exception of Mothma who made the request that it be very little.

With everyone settled, Admiral Hood got down to business.

"So, I noticed that you guys are labeled the Rebel Alliance. Am I looking at the leaders of an insurrection of some kind?" Admiral Hood asked.

"Of sorts, yes," Mon Mothma answered, "Several years ago, the galaxy we come from was ruled by a Republic. It was a troubled Republic, but a Republic nonetheless. That was until the last Chancellor was elected. Over the next several years he used a developing Separatist movement as an excuse to consolidate his power. With the galaxy spiralling toward a war we were ill equipped for, the Senate was more than willing to hand the extra authority over to him if it meant he could keep the Republic together."

"To his credit, he did do that. The after a three year slugging match, the Emperor brought the war to a swift, albeit bloody, end. However, it came at the cost of most of our freedom and the rising of the what is now known as the Empire," Leia added.

"I understand the resentment over the loss of certain freedoms, but what compelled you to raise a fleet for the express purpose of fighting this government? Isn't that what the issue with your Separatists was?" quizzed the Admiral Hood.

"Simple. First, we are not employing the same horrific tactics that they did. No matter how much they tried to bury it, the Separatists became more known for their genocidal military commander, than their ideals," Mon Mothma explained, "Second. We wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for the crimes that the Emperor has committed to raise and maintain his empire."

"What crimes does he stand accused of?" asked the Arbiter as his face formed into what resembled a curious look.

"Many," Leia quickly answered as she felt the heat rise in her cheeks.

However, before she could continue, Mon Mothma subtly grabbed her arm, signalling that she would explain. With that she produced a data pad.

"I will show you," Mothma stated as she pressed a few buttons, "When he rose to power, he still had one real threat. They were the Jedi, a group of force sensitives that acted as the peace keepers of the galaxy."

"I'm sorry. What are force sensitives?" asked Captain Lasky.

"I can explain further in a few, but the force enhanced one's reflexes and is what gives people life. People who have an exceptionally strong connection can be trained to develop telekinetic powers. The Jedi trained from childhood to use these powers to keep the peace," Luke spoke up.

"I see," Captain Lasky concluded skeptically.

"We were able to get our hands on some of the security footage of the military raid on their temple, lead by fallen knight Anakin Skywalker… Also known as Darth Vader," Mothma explained as she passed over the data pad.

Usually she wouldn't have used his real name to keep Luke from knowing what his father had become. However, now that he was aware of who his father was, she wasn't as worried about Luke hearing his name used in this matter.

The looks passed from the other side of the table, told the Alliance representatives that they noticed the similar last name.

"So what's the relation?" the Admiral asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My father," Luke answered as he lowered his head.

"I see."

With that he began the video. The first one was of a large open room. Inside, several Jedi raced to the door, unignited lightsabers in hand. There was a series of loud explosions then a loud crash as a massive door suddenly fell to the floor. In rushed a man with an ignited blue lightsaber.

 _Skywalker,_ Admiral Hood concluded.

No sooner did he leap at the first Jedi, than the room erupted in laser fire. The Jedi fought furiously, but were quickly either cut down or gunned down by concentrated laser fire. At the same time the room became flooded with white and blue, armored soldiers.

"Spread out and secure the temple," Anakin ordered, "Brigade one you're with me."

"Yes sir." replied the commander.

As he went to walk away, Anakin turned to him, "Commander. Remember. Among the Jedi there is no innocents. Wipe them out."

The way he uttered the words was enough to send a chill down everyone's back.

"Yes my lord," the Commander crisply answered as he ordered the men to move out.

What they saw in the next recordings was horrifying. The first showed an outside view where the Republican Guard had set up AA guns and was shooting down every evac transport that tried to leave the temple.

The next few showed the clones lining up the few prisoners into what appeared to execution lines, and Anakin and the clones mercilessly killing anyone that was unfortunate enough to be found by them. It was finally capped off with the killing of the younglings in the Council chambers. After what felt like forever it went blank, leaving everyone speechless.

Finally the Arbiter spoke up, "How many?"

Captain Lasky subconsciously shifted away from the Arbiter do to his icy tone.

"We believe there were no survivors. That would put the death toll at about two thousand over the next forty eight hours, ages five to one hundred and twenty," Mon Mothma answered solemnly, "Knowing several Jedi were hiding in the city, the soldiers later burned most of the bodies on the front steps in an attempt to draw out those that were hiding. Over the next couple weeks, it wasn't uncommon to look out from my apartment and watch a Jedi or two make a futile attempt to avenge what happened. In the end they all ended up like the rest, dead."

"I see. Am I to assume it got worse from there?" pressed the Arbiter.

"Yes. In the first several years of the Empire, there were several such massacres as the Empire hunted down the Jedi, and secured its hold on the galaxy," Leia answered.

"While the Empire was more deliberate about keeping them under wraps, word leaked out. The most well known one was on Kashyyyk where Imperial soldiers put down a slave revolt with a firebombing campaign and the execution of several hundred of the native Wookies," Mon Mothma added, "However, things came to a head four years ago with the destruction of Alderaan."

"Hold on? I could understand leaving a planet uninhabitable, but do you mean to tell me they actually destroyed a planet, as in blew it apart?" asked the Admiral in disbelief.

"Yes," Leia stated sharply, "If you scroll down, you'll find the images."

Swiping down on the data pad they were rewarded with images of what appeared to be asteroids.

"The Empire designed the Death Star, a space station with the firepower to destroy a planet. Their hope was that fear of the station would keep the planets in line. Upon, completion, they test fired the station on the planet. It was home to a few billion people and held no military value at all. They had no reason to destroy it besides proof that they could. What you see there is all that is left of Alderaan," Leia stated matter of factly.

It was only years of political service that kept her emotions out of her voice. Even four years later, the memories of that day were fresh in her mind. There was a moment of silence as the Admiral processed what he had heard. He had to admit, the Empire was starting to remind him of a human, non religious version of the Covenant. He immediately felt a flood of emotion, all of which could be summed up to shock and anger.

After what felt like forever, he spoke, "This fleet was put together for the purpose of exploring the same galaxy you came from. As such I was given the authority to handle any preliminary negotiations in a first contact situation like this. Acting on that authority, I would like to present an offer."

"What exactly is the offer?" Mothma asked, while hiding her curiosity behind a politician's face.

"We would like to offer you the supplies and manpower to repair your fleet back up to operational status before you leave. While here you would be under our protection, which would mean that an attempted attack by the Empire would constitute an attack on us, something we don't take lightly," the Admiral stated.

Mothma's face lit up, before her eyes narrowed, "Our thanks. However, might I ask what the catch is?"

Admiral Hood paused for a minute. He could honestly say he hadn't thought of that.

"Perhaps we could coordinate an exchange of tech and information," he suggested.

After a nod from Luke and Leia, Mon Mothma conveyed their agreement.

"Alright then. It'll take time to get the supplies, so your admiral might as well make himself comfortable," Admiral Hood suggested, "In the meantime would you mind answering a few questions?"

"As long as it's within reason," Leia answered.

With that all the Arbiter, Captain Lasky, and him took turns asking questions.

The first thing that was asked about was the force, something that seemed to intrigue all of them.

Luke went on to explain as best as he could how it worked and the difference between the light and the dark. However, at least to Luke, it became clear that he still didn't fully understand.

As the conversation continued, questions were asked about Imperial and Rebel tactics and policies. Mentally, Admiral Hood made several notes on what was said. After this, he planned on having a long conversation with ONI and the other powers that be. Beside him, the Arbiter found himself being, not so pleasantly, reminded of some of the Covenant's war tactics and policies as he listened to them elaborate on the Empire. At the same time his respect for the Alliance grew the more he heard of them. Though he had to admit the old Republic had definitely been troubled.

After about an hour, Luke asked his own question, "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but it appeared that there were two totally different factions represented in your fleet," seeing the Admiral nod, Luke finished, "Why?"

The question seemed to age Admiral Hood by several years, and Luke flinched as he felt the Arbiter's anger spike in the force.

"Because we weren't always at peace with each other," the Admiral answered, "Around forty years ago, the Covenant attacked us. Unknowingly we had become the target of a religion based genocidal war. Infact, this system is where it all started."

"For years we blindly followed our religious leaders, the Prophets, as they lead us against the humans. We hunted them system by system, slowly driving them back to their home worlds," the Arbiter added.

Now it was the Alliance's turn to listen with shock as the Admiral and Arbiter took turns explaining what happened. All three of them had a hard time wrapping their heads around the fact that two mortal enemies were now sitting side by side as allies. Mon Mothma lived long enough to see the worst that the Empire had to offer. However, she could honestly say it all paled in comparison to what the Covenant had done.

They were just finishing their explanation when Roland suddenly appeared, much to everyone's surprise.

"Sir, an object just appeared with an FTL signature similar to the Rebel fleet," he stated.

Luke suddenly got a feeling of dread.

"Show me," the Admiral stated.

Rolland was replaced with the unmistakable image of an Imperial probe droid.

He started to speak, "It appears to be-"

"Kill it!" Leia almost shouted before quieting down, "It's an Imperial probe droid. They've found us. No use letting them get any more info than they have, considering the state of our fleet."

"She right," the Admiral told Roland, "Kill it."

"Yes sir. Sentry craft are moving to engage," Roland concluded.

 **(SSD Executor: Kuat Drive Yards)**

Admiral Piett felt a lump form in his throat he stared at the screen. To the side and now off screen was the remains of the Rebel fleet. However, what startled him was the massive build up of ships, shielding the Rebel fleet. There were over ninety of them and they were massive. The grey, geometric ones were about the same size if not a bit bigger than the Imperial-Class Warships. The purple ships were more organic in shape and even bigger, with ships ranging from the size of the Imperial-Class Warships all the way up to a handful of Dreadnaughts (at least judging by the tonnage) that were easily the same size, if not bigger, than the Executor.

 _What in the hell… That's more Dreadnaughts in one fleet than the Empire has in existence,_ Admiral Piett thought as his eyes widened into saucers.

He was snapped out of his awe as the screen dissolved into static.

"We've lost contact with the probe. It's probably been destroyed," the operator stated.

"No matter. Get that onto a data pad, and inform Lord Vader that we have an update for him," he stated.

As if on que the blast doors hissed open behind the Admiral. The distinctive _hiss-puff_ of Vader's suit caused the Admiral to spin around with a crisp salute.

"Ah. My Lord-"

"Skip the pleasantries Admiral. You have something for me," Vader demanded.

Admiral Piett quickly noticed that it was a statement, not a question.

"Yes my Lord," he answered quickly.

As if on cue an officer handed him a data pad.

"We found the Rebel fleet. They are in fact hiding on the outer edges of the next Galaxy over. They appear to have gotten some help from whomever lives there and… Well… You'd probably better just take a look," Admiral Piett tried to explain as he handed over the data pad.

Upon taking the data pad, Vader stared at it as the video from the probe played. The Admiral went to explain, but was sharply, but wordlessly ordered silent by the Sith Lord. Finally, after what felt like forever, Vader passed back the data pad, before producing his own.

"This is a deployment statement going to Imperial Intelligence and Fleet Ops. Sign off and prepare Death Squadron to move. Set a course for the Rebel fleet's location. I want to catch them before they disappear," Darth Vader ordered.

Admiral Piett was dumbstruck as he read it.

 _Fleet Call Sign: Death Squadron_

 _Flagship: SSD Executor_

 _Commanding Officer: Admiral F. Piett_

 _Date: 4 ABY_

 _Imperial probes have located the presence of 8 ships directly connected to the Rebel Alliance, currently residing in the Saleucami system. Seeing as it is wise to act on this info before the ships have a chance to escape, it is the intensions of Death Squadron to immediately deploy to the system with our full compliment (14 Imperial-Class and 1 Executor-Class). Our objectives are the destruction of the Rebellion Fleet and the capture of key Alliance leaders._

 _Signed:_

 _Authorization Code: DV-581759_

"Sir, these orders-" the Admiral went to protest.

"I am well aware of it's location and our numbers. I have certain plans that I will explain to you in private. However, right now you have a choice Admiral. Make no mistake, change is coming. What side are you going to put this fleet on?" Vader answered sharply.

The gravity of the situation suddenly set in as Admiral Piett connected the dots.

 _If he intends to meet the Rebels with this big of a difference in force… No, he's not an idiot. In fact he's surprisingly competent… Treason? He can't… Could he?_ The admiral thought, as a frown formed on his face.

Realizing he that Darth Vader had locked eyes with him, Admiral Piett gulped as he turned his eyes to the data pad and began signing. Darth Vader was right, a change coming. He knew it, and wasn't going to be on the wrong side of the fence.

"Yes my lord. It is signed and sent," he stated crisply as he passed back the data pad.

"Good. Bring us under immediate radio silence and get us into hyperspace," Darth Vader.

"Yes my lord."

With that, Darth Vader retreated back to the side of the blast doors where he crossed his arms, and watched the Admiral bring the fleet into hyperspace. It looked as though Vader was challenging anyone to dare leaving. However, inside his suit, Vader was far from being as confident as he appeared. That said, he now was the time. He either made his move now or there would be no chance at success.

"Sir, the fleet is in hyperspace," Admiral Piett stated.

"Good. Follow me, and have General Veers and Commander Appo meet me at my quarters," Vader ordered as he turned on his heel, "We have much to discuss and little time."


	3. Chapter 3

**(UNSC Infinity: 1 week later)**

Luke and the Arbiter stood across from each other as they circled around in the empty storage room. Each one had their weapon of choice drawn. The Arbiter held his energy sword tightly at his side. In contrast, Luke held his lightsaber up in a standard defensive formation, as he stared at the Arbiter. The sweat pouring off them was the only hint that the round hadn't just started.

Suddenly, the Arbiter lunged forward in a false attempt to stab Luke. Twisting away, Luke brought his lightsaber around in an attempt to block. Without warning, the Arbiter turned the stab into a slash. Luke was able to block it, but the move was awkward and forced his lightsaber between the twin blades of the Arbiter's energy sword, right where the Arbiter wanted.

With what passed as a smile, the Arbiter used all of his strength to twist his sword down and away. Wide eyed, Luke desperately attempted to change his grip before his wrist had a chance to break. After changing his grip, Luke used his only option. Mustering all of his strength, he pushed on his blade as hard as he could. Even with the force augmenting his strength, he was struggling to bend the Arbiter's arm as he attempted to shove both blades back into him. Slowly the saber lock turned into a stalemate as the Arbiter pushed back.

That's when he got an idea. Slowly he began to draw on some of the force. Using it, he focused on a small metallic object, not big enough to kill the Arbiter, but big enough to put him off balance. Feeling the tide of the saber lock change, Luke focused more on the object as simultaneously prepared to spring out of the way of any flying blades. Then, without warning, he let go with his right hand, shoved it back, twisted out of the way, and watched as a metallic ship part slammed into the back left side of the Arbiter's head. The force of the impact sent the Arbiter stumbling. Taking advantage of the situation, Luke wrenched his own lightsaber free, and pressed his own attack. Using a series of precise blows, he drove the Arbiter back. The finale came as Luke forced the Arbiter into a saber lock that he had control of. Wrenching his blade down and away, Luke used the opening to land his left boot into the Arbiter's lower jaws. The blow threatened to buckle Luke's knee as pain shot up his leg, but the kick further put the Arbiter off balance. The Arbiter was too busy trying to stay on his feet to counter as Luke further twisted his lightsaber, and sent his energy sword flying away. Swinging his blade back around, Luke stopped it a couple inches from the Arbiter's neck.

There was a brief moment of tension, before the Arbiter started chuckling.

"Very impressive. I have to say, that force is quite the deceptive trick. That makes your first sparring win. Yes?" The Arbiter stated as Luke deactivated his lightsaber.

"Ya," Luke answered before sucking down the contents of a half empty water bottle.

"I will admit though, those energy swords are something else," he marveled as the Arbiter collected his blade.

They were interrupted as Roland appeared in the holoterminal at the back of them.

"Hate to interrupt you two, but Admiral Hood needs both of you in the bridge ASAP," Roland stated.

"Understood. We're on our way," the Arbiter answered.

With that they turned and left for the bridge. Since Luke first appeared on the Infinity a week ago, the Arbiter had made a point of using any of his very little free time to help work with Luke on swordsmanship, as best as he could.

Upon reaching the bridge, they were immediately met by Admiral Hood and Captain Lasky.

Before anyone could speak, Admiral Hood started, "We're tracking fifteen Imperial contacts coming toward us. Admiral Ackbar confirmed them as those belonging to a fleet nicknamed Death Squadron. Frankly, I'm not sure if whomever is in charge of that fleet is suicidal or idiotic. However, given the state of the Alliance fleet, I'm going to ask you, Arbiter, if we could move their high command to the Shadow of Intent. She may see combat, but there is still relatively low odds that anything will happen to them there. The only exceptions would be Leia and Mothma, seeing as they are already here"

"I would be more than willing to secure them. What's the E.T.A on the Imperial fleet?" the Arbiter asked.

"One minute and counting," he answered before turning to the tactical board, "Roland…"

"Their already on their way," Roland quickly answered, "Shields are raised and the fleet is reporting in ready."

"Good. Luke, get to your fighter. You're to link up with Rogue Squadron," the Admiral ordered.

With that Luke turned to run to his fighter. However, there was a strange feeling in the force that caused him to pause at the door.

"Sir, the Imperial fleet has arrived," Roland reported, "However, something isn't right. They've positioned themselves between us and the moon. It's horrible for an attack, but the closest to perfect the fleet could get in terms of defense."

"Show me," the Admiral ordered.

At that point it Luke felt a dark, yet oddly comforting sensation seep into his body. With a sudden chill, he tried to force it out of his body. He knew exactly who was doing it, and wasn't about to get lulled into a sense of security. However, the harder he fought, the more intense the feeling became.

Then as if a light came on in his head, Luke understood what he was being told. Turning on his heels, he almost sprinted back to the tactical board.

"Commander. Shouldn't you be forming up with your squad?" asked the Admiral with a low growl.

"Yes, but on the way out… I got this… Well… You see, the Force…" Luke stammered.

"Go on get it out. What is it about the force? You have thirty seconds before I escort you off this bridge," the Admiral snapped.

After getting a moment to compose his thoughts, Luke finally blurted it out, "I don't think that fleet plans on attacking."

"Ya. What tells you that?" the Admiral quizzed.

However, mentally he was starting to think the same thing. The Imperial fleet hadn't moved and their shields were raised, but their weapons weren't even fully charged.

"Force sensitives can't usually perform telepathy, but they can project emotions across regions of space. In this case it was a strong feeling of safety and security," Luke began to explain.

Seeing the Admiral's skepticism, Luke continued, "The last time I got this was when I confronted my father, Vader, a year and a half ago. He had me pinned between him and a fall into oblivion, and had made it quite clear he had other… plans… that didn't mean me direct arm. I left there with a missing hand when he could have taken my head even easier. Even that strike was simply in self defense."

"So in other words we should lay down our arms and become friends just off a feeling?" snapped the Arbiter, in disbelief at what Luke seemed to be suggesting.

"No," Luke answered firmly, "However, hailing that fleet and verifying their intentions first may not be a bad idea."

The Admiral paused as he considered this. Even without Luke's "feeling in the force", there was overwhelming evidence that the fleet wasn't prepared to or intending to fight. However, his thoughts were interrupted by Roland.

"Sir, the Imperial flagship is hailing us," he reported.

"Patch them through on the main screen," Admiral Hood ordered before turning to Luke, "How good of a lie detector is that force of yours?"

"Good… Better than most people," Luke answered.

"Good stick around," he ordered as he turned to the screen as it appeared.

What appeared on screen, caught the Admiral off guard. Standing front and center was a large figure in solid black armor. While intimidating, the _hiss-puff_ of the person's suit told Admiral Hood that the suit was probably for more than aesthetics. Next to him was an officer in what appeared to be a grey ceremonial uniform. While, it was grey instead of white and more utilitarian than his own, the suit reminded Admiral Hood of his own from his time as a fleet admiral. Despite his attempts at a poker face, it was clear from the beads of sweat, that the forty year old admiral was nervous.

"Hello. My name is Admiral Piett, and beside me is my superior, Lord Vader," the man started, "We're with the Imperial… uh… I mean Death Squadron. Sorry. Things are moving rather rapidly."

Luke could feel the man's frustration, and nervousness seeping into the force.

"What reason do you have for being here?" the Arbiter demanded, "Make no mistake, we know exactly what government you answer to."

This time it was Vader that spoke up.

"We have come to discuss possible arrangements with the Rebel Alliance. Also, you would do wise not to make assumptions. We no longer answer to the Empire in any capacity," his voice boomed.

Vader's forcefulness and obvious annoyance caught everyone off guard. Not sure whether or not to trust what he had said, Captain Lasky, and Admiral Hood both shot Luke a look. Off screen, Luke was very surprised by what had just been said. However, he found no trace of deception in the force. Reluctantly, he gave the Admiral a nod.

Seeing it, the Admiral turned back to the pair, "Ok. However, I can't just simply take you at your word. Is there any proof of this?"

"Yes. We just sent our last deployment statement to you. It was dated as the same day that we left for here. You see, with Vader at the helm, what we committed was an unquestionable act of treason. Even if the military didn't see it that way, the Emperor would," Admiral Piett stated as he looked down at his data pad.

A minute later, an officer handed Admiral Hood his own data pad. For the next minute, he read in disbelief as he read the deployment orders.

"This planet… Saleucami…"

"Is on the other side of the Galaxy. Imperial Intelligence probably already knows of our direction, but it should have been enough to put them off our trail… or at least slow them down," the Admiral stated.

"I see. What do you want exactly?" Admiral Hood pressed.

"We wish to defect to the Rebel Alliance with the entirety of Death Squadron. Because I know the question will be asked: I dealt with Emperor Palpatine's spies… personally," Vader stated coldly.

The way she said it was very reminiscent of the tone he had used with the Commander during the raid on the Jedi temple. Hearing it was enough to tell everyone there the fate of every one of the "spies".

Caught off guard by the enormity of the offer, it took some more talking for Admiral Hood to work through suspicions enough to agree to a face to face meeting with the Imperial leaders. It was agreed that Vader would come, accompanied by two officers. Each could have a side arm, but no escorts were allowed.

* * *

Darth Vader fought very hard to not shift in his seat. It felt like he was coming out of the fire and into the frying pan. Years of manipulating and planning meant that weeding out the "disloyals" had been a quick task with minimal repercussions to the command structure of the fleet. Despite the effort it took to deal with the Inquisitors, he could honestly say that the conversation that laid ahead was going to to be even harder.

"This is Paladin 1 to control, we are setting down," the pilot stated to someone on his comm.

Taking the hint, Vader stood and made his way to the back of the shuttle. As he came to a stop, General Veers and Admiral Piett fell in on the left and right respectively. Each of them was sporting a full dress uniform. The only thing that was missing was the Imperial insignia on their chests.

As Vader watched the ramp drop, he found himself face to face with a team of Spartans, lead by Commander Palmer.

"Welcome. Blue team here will be your escort. I strongly suggest you don't go wandering off," Commander Palmer warned.

Underneath his helmet, Vader scowled at what the Commander was implying.

"Very well," Vader answered as they started moving, "And Commander. You would do wise to remember we are here by choice. We are no one's prisoner."

There was no response, but Vader almost thought he could hear a snicker come from the Commander. If she had been one of his officers, it would've been the end of more than just her career. However, she wasn't and he couldn't a fight was the last thing he wanted.

After what felt like forever, they were lead to the bridge. Upon entering, the Spartans broke away and formed up in the ranks of the marine guards in the room. Vader didn't care about that. He was more interested in the people staring at him. Across from the tactical board was Mon Mothma, Leia, Luke, Admiral Hood, Captain Lasky, and the Arbiter.

That's when Vader realized something was up. Reaching into the force, Vader soon found what he was looking for.

"Cloaked soldiers. I'm impressed," Vader stated with a hint of professional admiration.

"Good. However, we have more pressing things to discuss," the Arbiter answered.

"Yes we do."

"Let's start with why you defected," Leia interjected, "What could we possibly offer one of the most powerful people in the galaxy?"

Inwardly Vader scoffed before answering, "Second in command means nothing. Believe it or not, twenty years ago when he betrayed the Republic he stabbed me in the back just like he did the rest of you."

"Somehow I doubt that," Mothma snapped.

Usually she wouldn't have been that forward, but she had lost a lot of good people and friends to Vader.

"Believe what you want, but it might serve you to know that my first training with Sidious came a day after Obi Wan forced me into this suit. I learned the extent of what I had done and attempted to split his skull with his own lightsaber," Vader replied shortly.

He really didn't want to go down this road.

Now Mothma was on a roll as long since buried memories surfaced, "Tell me. Was this before or after you killed your wife? Did you even care about-"

She was interrupted as lights began to flicker and short circuit. There was a change in engine pitch and murmurs of surprise from the bridge crew as the ship began to lose power. Within seconds, the entire ship seemed to be trembling. It didn't take Admiral Hood more than a second to realize who was causing it.

"Vader, if you-"

"Mothma, Do not speak on what you don't understand," Vader barked while ignoring the admiral.

Vader had hit the end of his very short fuse, and was doing all he could not to kill someone. He was brought back to reality as the owe of the ship began to tilt downward. Realizing what he was doing, Vader quickly brought back his anger. It wouldn't due to destroy the ship, because someone knew what buttons to press. Almost instantly things began to return to normal. At the same time, every non Spartan in the room took an involuntary step back.

"So, what do you want. I'm not enough of an idiot to think that a Sith would change sides without some sort of ulterior motive," Leia asked as she tried to steer the conversation back on track.

 _Many things! You and Luke, Padme, the ability to travel back in time with my current knowledge… Everything!_ A voice inside Vader's head screamed.

Using every ounce of discipline he could muster, Vader answered, "I want the suit off, and I want Sidious dead. If it means handing the galaxy over to the Alliance, than fine. I doubt you guys are going to be any worse than the Empire."

"Then what? You take over in the chaos and make yourself emperor?" the Arbiter quizzed.

"No. Ideally, I fade into the background and die peacefully as hermit, and leave the rest of the galaxy to their own devices. I'm tired of being a slave. I've served many different masters, but in the end that's all I've ever been," Vader answered.

Before anyone could speak, Admiral Piett spoke, "Gentlemen. I think I speak for everyone, at least those still alive, when I say 'We lost our faith in the Empire a long time ago.' I was serving as a captain in my home sector chasing smugglers and pirates in the outer rim when Alderaan was destroyed. That's literally all we did, nothing much that was morally objectionable. However, I still remember my XO bursting onto the bridge and trying to tell me what happened between tears, because he had a family planet side when it happened. I nearly deserted that day, and it has not gotten better."

"So what changed?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

If they could understand the Imperial's reasons for defecting, then he could decide how much to trust them.

Admiral Piett couldn't help a cynical chuckle as he answered, "Simple. I see a way that we can do this without complete anarchy. You see, I grew up in a refugee camp during and after the Clone Wars. I joined the Imperial Naval academy, because the one thing that I feared more than the Emperor was a lack of effective control, It wasn't until recently I was given other options."

"My reasons are even more simple. Unlike the Admiral, I'm a bit more aware of what happened to Vader pre Death Squadron, and know that the Emperor screwed him over. Between that and my own set of grievances, this is the least I can do. I hold loyal to the principals that made the idea of the Empire so appealing, not the abomination that the Emperor has turned it into," General Veers added.

"I see. Here's the next question… Why do you want the suit off?" Captain Lasky quizzed.

"Someone has to kill the Emperor. Luke isn't strong enough yet, and no one else would get anywhere near him. With that, this suit has hampered my abilities in the force. With it I wouldn't last any longer than he wanted me to in a fight. I learned that the hard way when I first tried to kill him," Vader answered.

"Funny. This is coming from the guy that hunted down and kill most of the Jedi order single handedly," Leia retorted.

"If only you knew how many of those nearly killed me. I was forced to turn Galen on the ones I couldn't kill myself," Vader answered.

Feeling Leia's anger rise again at the mention of Galen, he cut her off, "That is a long and complicated story that we do not have time for at the moment. I might remind you that in the Old Republic, if the Sith wanted a Jedi dead, they sent one or two Sith to deal with him. If the Jedi wanted a Sith dead, they sent a strike team of six or seven Masters to kill the Sith."

There was a moment of silence as everyone contemplated what they had been told. No one liked the idea of having of working with Vader. All of them were well aware of the loose cannon he could be. However, they also couldn't afford to turn down this offer. None of the Alliance leaders were under any illusion as to how hard the Emperor would be to kill. Admiral Hood finally asked them to step out so that they could make a decision.

After what felt like forever, the Imperials were escorted back in. The final agreement was in exchange for helping kill the Emperor and bring down the Emperor, they would see about getting Vader independent of his suit, and greatly reduce his charges (No one, even Vader, was willing to drop all war crime charges), and finally the fleet would get the same offer every other ex Imperial got. They would not be charged under the condition that they proved loyal to the Alliance.

As they were walking out, Admiral Hood stopped Piett.

"Does he always react like that, when he's angry?" Admiral Hood asked.

"No. Frankly, Mothma can consider herself lucky. Only one other person was stupid enough to bring up his past like that. In less than thirty seconds, Vader broke every bone in the man's body and left a dent in an eight inch thick blast door. It took us weeks to get the blood stains out of the bridge," Admiral Piett answered, "In terms of typical mess ups, I would say yes, but things seemed to change after he killed Admiral Ozzel over Hoth."

"I see."


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone. I'm not going to lie. I had a heck of a time writing this chapter, but here it is. The final pieces are falling into place. Then it'll be "off to the races" or in this case "wars". Anyway, thank you for the reviews. I am glad everyone is enjoying the chapter.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you chapter 4.**

* * *

Over the next few days final preparations were made as the Rebel fleet finished repairing their ships. As they were doing that, Admiral Hood began his own preparations. After the last few days, he really didn't like the idea of sending the Alliance fleet out by themselves and was working on a plan with Fleet Com. on how to change things. During that time, Dr. Halsey was quietly flown out to the group doctors and surgeons to help with Vader due to her work with the Spartan project and the resulting cloning procedures.

Outside Darth Vader's chambers, Luke and Admiral Piett were pacing as they waited for the results of the "pre op" meeting between the Doctors and Vader. Admiral Piett had originally wanted to be present inside, but Vader insisted that that would not happen for a number of unnamed reasons. After a few minutes of tense silence, Admiral Piett finally decided to break the ice.

"So… Since we're on the same side, mind if I ask a question?" he asked hesitantly.

"Depends. What do you want to know?" Luke asked carefully.

They may have been on the same side, but Luke still had a hard time trusting the man.

"Eversense the destruction of the Death Star, Vader has been obsessed with finding you, almost to the point of neglecting other duties. Why? I understand the magnitude what you did, but still… something doesn't add up." Admiral Piett asked.

Luke rolled the question around in his head as he searched for a proper response. His first instinct was to dodge the question anyway possible. Then it dawned on him that one way or another the family tie couldn't remain a secret forever.

With a sigh, he made the answer short, "Vader's my father."

Even a year and a half later, the word "father" didn't quite sit right. However, Luke was determined to accept the relation. Denying it couldn't change the past, and would only bring more hate and suffering. He knew who he was, and what he believed. He had solidified that in the aftermath of Bespin.

"Well… Umm… I guess," stammered the Admiral as he tried to find his words, "I guess it makes sense... I mean, a lot of his orders make more sense now."

"What do you mean?" Luke asked, growing curious.

"Well, when we attacked your base on Hoth, we were given an order. We were to bring you and your sister to him alive. Under no circumstances were we to kill you. Given the relation, I can understand why he would have a problem with your death," Admiral Piett stated.

"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa. My sister?" Luke asked in disbelief.

He had been thrown several curve balls over the course of his life, but this was something else.

"You know… That princess?" Admiral Piett clarified, "He said we'd notice the resemblance. He didn't have a decent picture of you to give the teams, so he told us to use her as a way of telling."

There was another awkward silence as Luke tried to sort out what he had just heard. Reaching into the force, he tried to find any deception in the Admiral's words. However, he couldn't find it. This meant that at Vader had probably told him that. Considering Vader probably had no reason to lie to the Admiral, Luke could at least presume that it was the truth, though he would definitely be following up on it.

"I see. Well, now you know why," Luke answered.

Admiral Piett went to say something, but was interrupted as the head surgeon, Doctor Pierce, and Doctor Halsey both stepped out of Vader's quarters.

"Well? What can you tell us?" Admiral Piett immediately asked.

Dr. Pierce didn't even bother hiding his annoyance as he answered, "Not much. He is missing his right hand, left arm, and both legs. Plus, his suit is so intertwined into his body systems that we couldn't risk removing his suit pre operation. So all that we know for sure is that he has severe and poorly taken care of burns on at least his face. We know his lungs are pretty much shot, and his vocal cords are completely useless. Beyond that, we won't know the full extent until we open him clear up. However, based on the extent of his suit, we are expecting the worst."

"Right. I should be able to clone most of the organs in his body. The only exception is a brain, and that seems to be fine," Dr. Halsey added, "However, I won't lie. This is a very risky surgery. The odds of him living, and being a functional person afterwards is low."

"Thank you. Is that all?" Admiral Piett asked crisply.

He decided to hide his sudden wave of nervousness behind an emotionless exterior.

"Yes. Thank you," replied Dr. Halsey.

After that, Admiral Piett escorted everyone, including Luke, back to an awaiting Pelican in the main hanger. As Luke climbed on the shuttle, his mind raced. He had felt attracted to Leia, but it had never been romantically. He had always felt that it was his job to keep her safe. She had always seemed like a sibling to him… a nice one, but a sibling none the less. As he rode back to the Infinity, Luke couldn't help but blush as he remembered the exchange between him, Han, and Leia. Getting kissed had been awkward enough as it was in that situation. Finding out she was his sister just made it worse.

Stepping off the Pelican, Luke felt in his gut that he needed to say one last thing.

"Doctors!" he called, "A word please?"

"Yes? What's up?" asked Pierce

Dropping his voice as low as he could, Luke answered, "I understand what Darth Vader has done. I have seen the results of his actions. I also understand his status as a high value-"

"You're not seriously insinuating that we would kill him on purpose, are you?" Pierce asked indignantly.

"No, not by your own volition. However, I have done my own reading since getting here, and frankly don't trust ONI further than I can throw them," Luke answered quickly.

Dr. Halsey's first instinct was to agree with him. She had never been totally fond of ONI but saw them as a necessary evil. However, that changed when Commander Palmer attempted to kill her. Looking at Luke, though, she saw something else that made her change her words. It took her a moment, but she saw it. Worry. Luke was genuinely worried for the man… or machine… or whatever he was now.

"I can see the Admiral being worried. Without Vader, he's at the mercy of Alliance High Command, but you're not. Why do you care?" Dr. Halsey asked.

Luke cast a nervous look around, both visually and with the force.

Seeing no one within earshot, he answered, "Vader's my father."

Despite calm exteriors, Luke felt the force flood with surprise and apprehension.

Seeing this, Luke continued, "Look. I know you guys still don't know what to think about the force. However, I need you to understand. On the surface, he is a monster pure and simple. However, a deeper look will reveal that he's a very broken man. He simply hides behind the face of said monster. I don't know why or how how he got this way, just that he is. On top of that he is our best chance to defeat the Empire. Pre Empire, he was a Republic war hero and a cunning warrior. If I have to spell out why his Imperial time is important, than we have other issues. Please, do the best that you can."

Both doctors gave a small nod.

"We'll do what we can," answered the doctor.

Sensing their comprehension and sincerity, Luke simply nodded before leaving for his X-Wing. Meanwhile, Dr. Halsey went up to the bridge. Admiral Hood wanted to know what state Vader was in, and what exactly was the extent of his suit's operations.

Within a day, Vader was quietly brought to the nearest fully functioning hospital for the surgery. The only people to go with him was Luke, and the Arbiter. Apparently Admiral Piett and Admiral Hood apparently had things to finish wrapping up.

Quietly Darth Vader laid in his hospital bed. He closed his eyes as he fell into a meditative state. It was almost blissful as he felt the sedatives take him away. The last sound that his brain registered before going to sleep was the sound of footsteps entering the room.

Dr. Halsey cast a cautious glance at the Sith Lord. His helmet was removed due to the pressurized state of the room. She had to admit that the man looked almost vulnerable without the helmet, but she knew better. Turning away, she checked the monitors. After finding the info, she turned around and walked out.

"He's asleep," She told Pierce.

"Good. Let's get this done."

One could almost cut the tension with a knife as he was rolled into the operation room. The next hours ticked by as the doctors worked furiously to put his body back together. Dr. Halsey stood back only moving forward to give him an organ or limb as required. Part of it was to stay out of their way, and part was because, even asleep, the man was quite intimidating. In the last two hours alone, Vader had coded three times, and the words rolling of the surgeon's mouth were enough to make most Marines blush.

After the better part of a day, Dr. Pierce burst through the doors into the waiting area with Dr. Halsey right behind.

"How is he?" Luke asked as he stood up.

"Stable. Ignoring the fact that he coded five times, the surgery went smoothly. Later today he will be moved to the Redemption for a bacta tank. It won't be until after a day or two that we know how well he will recover," Dr. Pierce answered.

"How extensive were the injuries?" Luke asked.

"Bad. Both lungs were seared with one being collapsed. Most of his organs from the lungs, down were badly damaged. By the time we were done, we found more machine than man. He had missing limbs and was burned over ninety percent of his body. That said, I've seen better burn treatment from an aid station. They were clean and not infected but they would've hurt him like hell, and they were dealt with in a way that the pain is permanent. We could reduce it, but that was it," Dr. Pierce reported.

* * *

Staring down at them, Obi Wan felt sick as he listened to the doctor tick off the list of injuries. Standing among the fire and ashes, Obi Wan had still hadn't been able to find it in himself to kill his former apprentice. However, listening to the hell that Obi Wan had sentenced Vader to, he seriously wished he had.

Reaching into the force, he felt the horror and understanding radiate off Luke. The four jawed creature next to him, though, had a totally different reaction. Part of him was horrified. However, the majority of him was happy. The Arbiter was happy that the "ruthless monster" had suffered. Obi Wan had to actively talk himself out of materializing and lecturing the Arbiter on what Anakin use to be, and inform the being of how similar they were. However, Obi Wan didn't. He didn't because in the end of the day the Arbiter held the moral high ground. He regretted his actions. Vader, as far as he knew, didn't. The Arbiter had completed his path to redemption and then some. Second, if Obi Wan knew anything, it was that Vader wouldn't be afraid to tell him off if need be. He had done it to Tarkan during the Citadel rescue, he could do it to the Arbiter.

Stroking his beard, Obi Wan thought long and hard. No doubt, Vader would want to train Luke, but with his defection things were greatly up in the air. The original plan he had devised with Yoda was now dust. War was coming. It was going to be fast and brutal, that much he knew. He also knew it wouldn't be the hit and run war they had been waging. It would over shadow the Clone Wars by a lot. However, what he didn't know was what part the twins would play. He had chosen Luke over Leia for training for a number of reasons. However, some of those reasons made her just as dangerous as her father. Obi Wan would have to remember to keep an eye on her. If Vader and Sidious failed to corrupt Luke, Leia would be the next target. She was strong in the force, but held lots of hate. Oh, how she held on to hate. Hidden behind her calm exterior, it had permeated her quite extensively. Luckily she had yet to realize her powers. However, that would change. With a sigh, Obi Wan left. He and Yoda needed to talk, and talk now.

 **(UNSC Infinity: 3 days later)**

Admiral Piett really couldn't believe he was having this conversation. He was currently talking with Admiral Hood and the Arbiter about invading the Empire, his home.

"With the slipspace drives, our ships could just jump out over Coruscant and just take the capital and work from there. As you said, the Empire is a grenade. All we have to do is pull the pin," the Arbiter suggested.

Admiral Piett stared at the Arbiter in disbelief at the stupidity of what he suggested.

Finally, he answered, "Let's say you destroy the defensive fleet which is twice as big as our combined fleet, not counting defense stations. Let's say you destroy one of the biggest garrisons in the galaxy. Or even better, let's say you get the Covenant to glass it, giving the Empire lot's of propaganda ammo. You will only be alive as long as it takes for the Imperial Grand Admirals to get over their shock and bring the entire Navy down on you, and make no mistake, the Emperor does not give out the rank of Grand Admiral for a song and a dance like he does for some other positions. I give you maybe a rotation or two after they show up, max. Their ships are smaller but the amount that would be showing up for that fight would more than make up for it."

Admiral Hood frowned as he stared at the map. He knew it was a long shot, but he was hoping that the Emperor was as arrogant as he seemed to be. However, that didn't seem to be the case. For the last couple hours they had been throwing strategies back and forth. Each one was shot down for one reason or another.

"Alright. You didn't want chaos, but you've managed to eliminate every plan that would reduce it," Admiral Hood growled.

"True, but I'm not going to kill myself or my men for nothing," he answered as he stared at the map.

At that moment, Vader walked into the room. Both men looked up and stared the man down. Vader was badly scarred, with no hair. He also sported all four of his limbs, except his right hand. He had asked for it to be left robotic for reasons he refused to tell anyone. He was sporting solid black robes with the cape he held before. His robes still held the chest armor that it sported before, but there was an obvious lack of buttons. He also sported the same black gloves that he had before. However, unbeknownst to anyone but Piett, they were different. They were a set of Mandalorian crushgaunts that he had managed to acquire. Add in the yellow eyes and an intense stare, and no one could deny that he was no less intimidating than he had been in the suit. The paleness in his skin and a hint of sluggishness in his movements was the only evidence that he wasn't totally healthy yet.

"Dathomir," he stated, breaking the silence, "We attack Dathomir. From there we can gain a strategic foothold and put a wrench in the inquisitors at the same time."

Admiral Hood took a moment to stare at the map.

"You realize we're going to fight clear across the galaxy, right?" the Admiral quizzed.

"No. We won't be. We hit these systems and cut him off one sector at a time while marching through to Coruscant. At the same time, the Rebellion can do what they do best," Vader answered sharply as he pointed to a series of systems.

Admiral Hood picked up a bit of raspiness in the man's voice.

"What would that be?" asked the Admiral.

"Raise hell."


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey, everyone. Well, it took forever but I have the next chapter and we are off to war. However, I have two disclaimers.**

 **Disclaimer 1: In the beginning there is a conversation between Admiral Piett and Commander Rtas (People should recognize him from Halos 2 and 3). It may seem out of character, but you can't convince me that the Elites, especially those who survived the Human-Covenant War are all going to be on board with helping a bunch of ex Imperials.**

 **Disclaimer 2: Yes Admiral Thrawn is here. I did the best I could in writing him. However, I have never read the Thrawn trilogy, so I could only go on the knowledge I've picked up and Wookiepedia. So, please NICELY tell me how I did. Tips would be greatly appreciated.**

 **Well now that that's out of the way, I give you chapter 5:**

* * *

 **(SSD Executor: 1 Week later)**

Admiral Piett glared at the Elite on the main screen. He was glad they had the help but he was seriously getting tired of the stubbornness that seemed to permeate the species.

"I will not have you questioning my methods, Commander," Admiral Piett growled.

"Yes, but I refuse to let an inherent enemy, especially human, lead my men," Commander Rtas countered.

"Damn it. I was told that your ships were to be placed under my command. For you to demand that I turn that command over to you is asinine and totally uncalled for. We all have the same mission and the same goals. You may not like me, and I sure as hell don't like you, but we all have the same goals. So, suck it up and deal with it," Admiral Piett snapped.

It was at this point that the Admiral found himself glad that they were separated by the void of hyperspace. The glare on the Commander's face betrayed his wish to kill the Admiral where he stood.

"How dare you talk to me as though I am some sort of- Ack!" The Commander started to yell.

He was suddenly cut off as an invisible hand clenched his throat. Commander Rtas found himself gasping as he fought for every ounce of air.

"Commander," Vader bellowed as he marched into view, "The decision has been made, like it or not. Your opinion is of no matter. Admiral Hood and the Arbiter have spoken. Now, if you want to be around to see your men through the battle, I strongly suggest you stand down… _Now_."

Upon sensing the Commander's force signature change, Vader let him go. Wishing not to risk another blow to his dignity, the Commander signed off. This left the bridge of the Executor in a tense silence. With an annoyed sigh, Vader took his usual space in front of the view port. Deciding that it would be wise to cover himself on this, Admiral sent the Arbiter a report on the exchange with the Commander. However, nothing ever came of it, that he knew of, besides a private conversation with Darth Vader, and The next couple days passed without issue as the fleet continued to their target.

Vader was in an empty room moving through a conjured up obstacle course when the Alert for "General Quarters" went out through the ship. With a sigh, Vader wiped the sweat off and made a beeline for the bridge. Vader seemed to be a small rock parting the waters as pilots and other crew members went sprinting past him. Rounding a corner, he was almost run over by a point defense crew sprinting to their stations. Else where, crew members were doing last minute prep on fighters and generally ensuring that the ship was ready for combat when it exited hyperspace.

He barely noticed the bridge doors snap open as he walked in. Silently he watched as the Admiral barked out orders.

"Raise the shields," Admiral Piett barked, "and bring all turbolasers online- full power. Lieutenant, what's the status on our fighters?"

"All fighters are green and awaiting orders to launch," the woman at across from him answered.

"Good. fighter wings 1, 3, and 6 are to take up sentry duty immediately upon engagement. All other bomber and fighter wings are to link up and engage enemy capital ships. Targets will be relayed in route," Admiral Piett ordered.

"Yes sir," the young Lieutenant replied

At this point the Admiral turned to his communications officer, "Inform the Infinity that Death Squadron is green and ready to go."

"Yes sir."

"Sir, we're exiting hyperspace," called out an officer from the "pit".

The same instant, the black and blue tunnel of hyperspace gave way to the starry void of space as the fleet came out. Behind the Executor all fourteen Star Destroyers suddenly appeared. Off each side of the fleet several "portals" opened up as part of the Covenant fleet came out of slipspace. Off to the far right, the Arbiter's group of ships came out, of slipspace, while the UNSC and Rebel fleet filled the center gab. Right in the middle of the kill zone was the Imperial defensive fleet, twenty strong.

"That's funny. I don't remember the Dathomir fleet being this big," Admiral Piett mumbled.

"Like I said at briefing. They're waiting for us," Vader responded, "Begin, attack."

"Right away," the Admiral acknowledged, before turning to his crew, "Launch all wings, and inform first echelon to begin their attack."

There was a change in the pitch of the engines as the ship accelerated toward its prey. At the same time the other two groups began their attack. Soon the space lit up with weapons fire as the fighters clashed. It was at that moment, the back of Vader's neck began to tingle. At the same time the force flooded with worry and alarm. Years of experience gave Vader all of the remaining info he needed.

"Admiral," he barked.

"Yes sir?"

"Widen out our sensors. Check behind us for Imperial contacts," Vader ordered.

"Yes sir," the Admiral crisply replied before raising an eyebrow, "Are you expecting a problem?"

Vader glared at the Admiral.

"Yes, and I will not have you questioning my judgement," he snapped.

The Admiral paled as he responded, "Yes sir."

With that he strode over to one of the work stations. Vader watched as he exchanged words with the officer in charge. Next came a pause as the man nodded and worked the controls. After another minute Vader felt the Admiral's emotions spike with surprise and anger as he traded more words with the officer.

As he walked away, he spun back around and snapped, "Get that on the holotable. I want a visual on what the hell we're looking at. Lieutenant Corban, inform the Infinity they're about to have company- Ten Imperial warships, all Imperial-class. All of them are coming from behind. I'll split off warships to help."

Now it was Vader's turn to raise an eyebrow as he walked over to the holotable.

"How close are they?" he quizzed.

"Thirty seconds and closing fast," the Admiral stated matter-of-factly.

Usually the Admiral wouldn't have worried about a small hiccup in plans, seeing as they still outgunned the Imperials 3:1. However, he had fought the rebels long enough to know how dangerous this flanking maneuver could be to them.

"Admiral," called Lieutenant Corban, "The Dawn of Hope and Winter Solace are moving to engage the new contacts."

"Commander Rtas's ship?" the Admiral asked with a raised eyebrow.

Seeing the officer nod, Admiral Piett went to countermand the Commander. He didn't trust the Elite and wasn't about to have that ship behind him. However, Vader stopped the him.

"No. Let Rtas go. That is his responsibility. Focus on ours," Vader replied coldly.

The Admiral nodded, as he went back to his duties. He allowed himself a smug grin. He wasn't much into power plays, but now he could make an exception. That Commander was putting his own life in in his hands. Based on Vader's statement, this would be the Elite's last battle if he failed.

 **(SSD Terror)**

Admiral Thrawn's eyes widened as his ship exited hyperspace. Even with the reports he had been fed on this fleet, it took its breath away. Having served the Empire since its conception, he had seen many impressive things. However, until now he had not seen a full fleet of Dreadnaughts. Though he would never openly admit it, he was glad that his ship was cloaked at the moment.

"Sir, there are two Dreadnoughts off our portside that are moving to engage," called one of the bridge officers.

Looking at them, Admiral Thrawn allowed a thin smile. They were obviously rushing to cut off his fleet before it blew away the rebels- blissfully unaware that they were running, full burn, right in front of his guns.

"Captain. Give us a targeting solution on that first Dreadnought. Look for the source of those shields. Arm missile tubes one through nine and bring all batteries to bear," he ordered.

"Yes sir."

 _Let's see how good your shields are,_ Admiral Thrawn thought as he sat forward in his command chair.

"Sir, target locked and missiles armed," Called an officer from the fire control center.

By this point the rest of the fleet had engaged as fighters and warships launched volley after volley at each other.

"Good. Fire all weapons and deploy the fighters," Admiral Thrawn ordered.

The response was instantaneous. The ship wasn't even done uncloaking before the first missiles launched. There was a flood of light as missile after missile hammered the shields. Soon the ship's hundred plus heavy turbo batteries added to the bombardment as the purple warship visibly reeled from the onslaught. At the same time fighters and bombers began to flood out of the hangers as they rushed to join the Admiral's perfectly controlled chaos.

* * *

Commander Rtas's eyes widened as the ship next to him rocked. Being a veteran of the Human-Covenant War and the Sangheili Civil War, he barely skipped a beat as he assessed the situation and issued orders.

"Tell the Dawn of Hope to continue covering the fleet. We'll take over combat with this ship," he ordered.

"Yes sir," came a crisp reply.

"Sir. The Executor just reported in. They're tracking ten more Imperial-Class warships and another Executor-Class warship that are entering the system… One minute out and closing fast," one of his bridge officers reported.

"Very well. Make sure the rest of the fleet knows, and get me a status report on the Dawn of Hope," the Commander responded.

There was a chorus of "Yes sir"'s as the crew went about their tasks. Soon the ships were trading places as the Winter Solace began to throw plasma at the Imperial warship. As the ships chipped away at each other, both ships were swarmed with fighters as they tried to gain some kind of advantage. What the Imperial ship seemed to lack in size, it made up for in its number of fighters, and the skill of its commanding officer.

"Sir, the Dawn of Hope just reported in. Their shields and ship-to-ship comms took heavy damage, but are still functioning. They are also reporting multiple hull breaches near the main point of attack. Final status is combat effective," reported one of his officers.

"Good. They have their orders. Inform them to transfer control over to the Infinity. They're the ones issuing orders here," Commander Rtas stated.

It was at that point that the rest of the Imperial ships entered the battle. Much to Commander Rtas's surprise the ships shot right over his picket line, came out right over top of the UNSC and Alliance ships, and began to lean to the port side as they brought their main guns to bear. At the same time, the ship he was presently fighting with began to pull back as it attempted to move to into the rear-center of its battle group.

"Sir, the ship is attempting to break off," called his second in command.

"I see that. Let it be. Move us up between the two battle groups. We will do what we can do from there," Commander Rtas ordered.

"Yes sir."

* * *

Vader watched as the ships clashed in a magnificent display of mayhem and death. He wouldn't be caught dead admitting it, but the Imperials had them in a dangerous position. His mind raced as he watched the ships move like pieces on a game board. His head racing the entire time. Something was had gone very wrong. It was nothing they couldn't recover from, but Vader also worried that it may be indicative of deeper problems. The precision and accuracy of the imperial defense/counterattack was too much to be the Emperor's foresight alone. Someone had given the Imperials info on their battle plans. Vader clenched his fists as he fought to contain his anger. As if to highlight his anger, one of the UNSC frigates was blown apart by concentrated fire from two of the Star Destroyers.

"Sir, the defensive fleet is moving to attack," Admiral Piett reported, "The Arbiter is breaking off his attack to help the second Echelon."

Vader let out a low growl as he decided on his next move.

"Tell first Echelon to engage the defensive fleet. Bring us in between the upper battle group and the defensive fleet. Focus on the defensive fleet and get the UNSC and Alliance ships out of there. The Arbiter and second Echelon have more than enough ships to deal with those in back," Vader ordered.

"Yes sir." Admiral Piett answered crisply.

Soon orders were being made and ships were being made as the fleet rushed to gain control of the situation. In the middle of the center cluster of ships Rouge Squadron was racing around trying to keep the fighters off their warships.

Luke threw his X-Wing into a steep nosedive as he rolled his fighter over on its back. Working the control stick ever so slightly he lined up a shot on an Imperial bomber going in for an attack run. A loud beep from his targeting computer confirmed what he already knew threw the force. He pressed the trigger and watched as four red laser sliced through the bomber. Almost immediately he was forced to pull up, which brought him into sight of another TIE fighter. Soon was nothing more than a flaming wreckage.

For hours the fight dragged on as the two sides fought for control. While Admiral Thrawn had less ships, he had played his cards in such a way that it almost didn't matter. The Imperials had launched themselves so close the center battle group that it was hard to engage them without getting in each other's way. However, numbers began to prevail as the Covenant Capital ships made their presence felt. Several Imperial ships fell to a mix of MAC gun and plasma fire, with one of the Executor-Class warships losing it's shields before getting ripped apart by the Infinity's MAC gun and the turbolasers of the Chimera and Avenger. At the same time another Imperial-Class Warship lost it's shields to Rogue Squadron before being blown apart by the Shadow of Intent's plasma cannons.

* * *

Admiral Thrawn was beginning to realize that his gamble had failed. He had two options. He could cut his losses and pull out with what was left of the fleet, or he could continue to fight, and either hope to pull off a miracle, or at least die a hero's death as far too many Imperial Commanders dreamed of. Clenching his jaw, he forced himself to accept the truth.

"Order all ships to disengage and prepare to jump out of system," he ordered.

"Sir?" asked the Captain in disbelief.

"You heard me. I will not cripple our defenses on some worthless venture. Order the fleet to retreat. We will hit them soon enough," the Admiral answered.

The steel in his voice left no room for debate.

"Yes sir," the Captain answered before issuing orders.

Despite attempts to trap them in, the Imperial fleet was able to break away and take more than a few enemies with them. It would be another hour before the fleet was able to pull itself away fully.

"Sir. Ships are requesting a destination," the Captain stated as the last ships got away.

"Pull back to Kentara Station," the Admiral ordered matter-of-factly.

"Yes sir," the Captain answered before relaying orders.

The Admiral watched as his remaining ships, some of which he doubted would make the trip, jumped into hyperspace. Despite his neutral exterior, it was clear that the Admiral didn't like the idea. Kentara station was an, officially, non existent naval base and research center inside the Maw. Due to the place's high concentration of black holes, the Maw was a defending tactician's dream and a ship captain's worst nightmare. Getting in there was very tricky and deadly if one didn't get the coordinates just right.

 **(UNSC Infinity)**

Vader watched as the ramp on his ship descended with a hiss. He had to suppress a groan as he saw who was waiting for him at the bottom of the steps. Standing in her usual white armor was Commander Palmer- glaring as always. While it was true that no one liked him, Commander Palmer seemed to enjoy testing his patience worse than others. Vader didn't even bother to acknowledge her as he marched down the ramp. As he passed, she fell into step behind and to his right, with a DMR in her arms.

"I've been to the bridge multiple times since I first defected. I'm pretty sure I won't get 'lost'," Vader growled, "So, if you're following me, you'd better have a better reason than that."

There was a pause. Vader really hoped he had been spared a response, but that hope was soon proven to be misplaced.

"Well, let's see… Number one, this is my ship. Number two, I have every right to be on the bridge for reasons that may or may not concern you. Number three, I have no doubt you won't get lost between here and the bridge. I'm just here to make sure you leave it the way you found it, especially considering you came here without permission and unannounced," she replied with an edge of cold sarcasm.

Vader clenched his fists. He was not in any kind of mood for this, with everything going on.

"Well, maybe you should take that up with Roland. Word is, he runs the ship," Vader snapped back as he rounded a corner.

"You know, I can hear you, right?" interjected Roland from a holoterminal in front of them.

"Good. Do your job then, next time," Vader retorted as he continued down the hall, "As for you Commander Palmer. You would be wise to remember that I am more than capable of killing everyone there if I wanted to. You would be nothing more than an insignificant annoyance. Remember, if I want someone to live, they will live. However, if I want them to die"- Vader let out a short, maniacal chuckle before growing deathly serious- "Then they will die, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Not even you or your precious Blue Team."

"Oh, if you only know what kind of hell my Spartans have dealt with. I've seen things that make you and your Emperor look pathetic," Commander Palmer replied sharply.

Despite her reply, Commander Palmer felt a chill go down her spine. Deep down, she knew the man had a point. He could either be their saving grace or their worst enemy. However, she also knew that each foe had a weakness. The trick would just be living long enough to find his.

Soon the bridge doors snapped open as Vader marched through. Waiting for him were two very upset men- Captain Lasky and Admiral Hood.

"Vader. One hell of a move you made. Where's the Admiral?" Demanded Admiral Hood.

The unspoken accusation wasn't missed by Vader.

"I'll tell you what I told your incessant Commander. If I wanted to kill you guys, you would be dead. I warned you that they would be waiting for us, and considering the kind of hell this ship seems to attract, you and Captain Lasky shouldn't be surprised that the Emperor used a little unnatural foresight," Vader barked.

Admiral Hood was actually startled by the amount of force behind Vader's words. Shaking it off he pressed his question, "Where's Admiral Piett?"

"Weeding out the traitor that rigged this trap," Vader snapped.

"Traitor… I thought you killed all of them," Captain Lasky countered.

Vader couldn't suppress a wry grin as he slowly shook his head.

"Obviously you don't understand Imperial Intelligence. They are worse than ONI. They have spies watching their spies. The Emperor has sleeper agents everywhere. Just ask the rebels. They have lost many people to them. I weeded out the ones I could find. There was a chance that a sleeper agent would slip through. However, now I can find him," Vader countered.

"Really, how?" Admiral Hood asked, not totally convinced.

"Easy. Sleeper agents aren't activated unless there is a specific mission. In this case there was, which means the agent needed a way to get outside communication. Find that trail and it'll lead you to the agent," he replied, "In the meantime, all we can do is continue operations."

Admiral Hood stared at the Sith as the words set in. Admiral Hood didn't want to admit it, but Vader had a point. All he could do was wait. He had no way to run his own investigation and it was obvious that Vader wasn't the leak for a number of reasons.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose Admiral Hood asked one last question, "Are you sure you're Admiral wasn't the agent?"

"Yes. He's too obvious," Vader answered, "I've spent years weeding out and prepping the command crews. Intelligence knows an agent wouldn't last long."

"I see. Well then I guess we have a planet to invade. Keep us posted," Admiral Hood finalized.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey everyone. Sorry this chapter took so long. I had a hard time with it. Also, a special shout out to cookie for the info on Thrawn in his review. Thank you. Anyway, sit back, enjoy, and please review. Without further ado, I give you chapter 6.**

* * *

As soon as the conversation was over, Vader followed Commander Palmer down to the Spartan deck for final briefings. As he walked through the passageways, Vader tried very hard to ignore all of the different glares being thrown his way. It was quite obvious that no one liked him being there, and his engagement with Commander Rtas didn't seem to be helping things.

"So, will Luke be joining us?" Vader asked as they stepped into the lift.

"No, he's out flying with Rouge Squadron for this mission," Commander Palmer answered.

"I see. Just make sure he comes back in one piece," Vader stated.

His voice was calm, but there was an edge of steel that made it quite clear that he was being serious.

Commander Palmer simply nodded as they stepped onto the second level catwalk. Vader listened and watched as Commander Palmer gave them the mission briefing, and assigned objectives. In his mind Vader was sizing up each Spartan. They were tough, that much was obvious. However, a brief probe in the force showed that most were force sensitive, at least by a little. Due to the fact that it obviously hadn't manifested itself in any of them, Vader concluded that it would reveal itself through their thoughts and reflexes. What really caught his attention was Blue Team. Those Spartans were easily the strongest in the force. Had they grown up in the Empire, at least two of them would've been grabbed for the Inquisitors. For a moment he thought about the possibilities around training them. However, he quickly dismissed the idea. They were way too old (even by Sith standards) and not easily molded. Vader was brought back to attention as the Commander was giving out the last orders.

"... Blue Team: You get the joy of working with Vader here. Your task is simple. The Imperials have a Bioweapons storage facility four miles north of their lines, connected by a series of tunnels. You'll have an areal insertion on the east side. Get in and hold it until the Arbiter's forces arrive. Report when it's secure," Commander Palmer stated, "Now, you all have your orders. As far as I'm concerned, the Empire has paved its road to hell. Now they get to drive down it. Hoorah?"

"HOORAH!" The Spartans yelled enthusiastically.

"That's what I thought… Dismissed," Commander Palmer concluded before walking back down the catwalk.

With a sigh, Vader stood on the catwalk for another moment as he let some of the Spartans exit for the hanger. If he were to be honest, he felt totally out of place, yet strangely right at home. For the first time in a while, he felt like he was right back in the middle of the Clone Wars, except he was invading the very Empire he had built. As the crowds began to thin out, he reluctantly moved for the hanger bay.

Down in the hanger, Blue Team was waiting for the pilot to finish last minute prep when Vader arrived. Looking up from his rifle, Fredric watched as Vader strode across the hanger. He had to admit that the man seemed to be doing good for having his body pieced back together.

"Hey, our neighborhood war criminal is here," he piped up.

Everyone's eyes quickly fell on Vader as he approached. If they were to be honest, they would admit that he was still an intimidating man, despite being no bigger than your average Marine. However, none of this showed as Vader came to a stop in front of them. Both sides simply stopped for a few seconds, sizing each other up. Everyone quickly noticed Vader's eyes focus on the Chief's faceplate in an attempt to lock eyes with him. Seeing the challenge, the Chief stared back, not daring to avert his eyes in this unspoken battle of wills. After a few seconds, Vader allowed a thin smile before replacing his unreadable mask.

"Ready when you are," called the pilot over the comm.

"Understood. We're ready," The Chief replied as everyone got settled in the Pelican.

"Understood," The pilot concluded as the rear door raised.

Vader felt his stomach dip as the Pelican lifted in the air. With the ships either out of system or destroyed, the ride into the atmosphere was smooth. However, that peace was lost the minute they entered the skies of Dathomir. The fleet may have broken, but their air defenses were alive and quite healthy. Vader listened as a series of TIE fighters raced over top of the Pelican. Judging by their direction and the fact that he was still alive, he assumed they were from death squadron. There was a series of muffled explosions and swearing from the pilot as the drop ship began rocking as moving around to dodge the thick flack. In the force Vader could feel lives wink out in the force as fighters, bombers, and drop ships began getting shot down. Much to his relief, though, Luke was still there and doing quite well from what he could tell. The flak was thick and Vader was feeling uneasy. More than once he was forced to use the force to redirect a missile away from the Pelican. After what felt like forever, the ship began to level off.

"One minute to drop," Called the pilot.

Vader stood up and moved toward the door with Blue team standing behind and beside him.

"Ten seconds," the pilot warned as the rear door lowered and the Pelican trimmed off large amounts of speed.

The Chief watched as the thick tangle of trees and undergrowth gave way to a two hundred yard clearing and the turret riddled, grey duracrete of the facility. The Chief was very glad they were doing an aerial insertion. Down below, several Stormtroopers were racing onto the flat roof. He counted the equivalent of four squads, plus heavy weapons. The pilot was going to need to get out quick. The Chief forced himself to wait for the green light before jumping. However, Vader wasn't so patient. The dropship hadn't even fully descended before he made the jump. The Spartan forced himself to resist the urge to go after the man. After a painful couple seconds, the light turned green. Within seconds of the light turning, the Pelican was empty and pulling away.

They descended into a mess of dead bodies. Most were sliced up, with some missing limbs. Two were leaning, dead, against a wall with scorch marks streaking up the front of their white armor. Up ahead, Vader wasn't much more than a blur as he swung his blade around. It came across in a short arch, slicing a carbine in half before slicing the trooper across the chest, killing him instantly. Without missing a beat, Vader used the force to throw three of the stormtroopers off the roof while using his blade to block what would've been several kill shots to the chest and head. Completely ignoring them, Vader did one thing that could've been classified as stupid. He turned his back to them, leapt across the roof, and landed in the middle of an incoming squad. Seeing the risk, Blue team sprung into action. The other squad, clearly to focused on Vader, didn't have any time to react as Blue team began throwing lead at them. The first two caught sniper rifle rounds to the head, as the team rushed forward. A few stray lasers flew out as they made quick work of the rest. With them dead, the roof fell silent. Wordlessly, Vader let his eyes wander to the dead bodies. Two had gaping holes in their heads. Another few had assault rifle rounds in their chests. The one furthest to the right had the distinctive holes of a point blank shotgun blast to the chest plate, while Frederic was removing a bloodied combat knife he had thrown through the left eye visor of a trooper.

 _Definitely force sensitive,_ Vader thought behind his unreadable mask.

"You know, that light was red for a reason," Linda commented as they approached the door.

"Because someone was being a wuss. Given your reputation, I'd like to think it was just the pilot," Vader replied as he turned to the door.

Upon finishing his statement, he snapped on his lightsaber as he examined the door while ignoring the unseen glares being thrown at him from the team.

"You know I can open that," came a masculine, but distinctively artificial voice from the Chief's helmet.

Vader felt surprise radiate off the Chief before being replaced by intense sadness and, much to his surprise, betrayal. The feelings didn't last more than a few seconds before being buried somewhere deep inside. Vader didn't say anything, but filed it away for later. If things came to blows, any psychological ammo he could use would be more than a little helpful. When people got emotional, they got sloppy, and when they got sloppy, they were easy targets. He knew this all too well- he flexed his artificial hand at the thought- and had used it many times when hunting Jedi.

"Roland, This door is over a hundred pounds, five inches thick, and pressure sealed. We don't have enough munitions on hand to crack open the door," Vader stated.

"I don't see what-"

"It has to do with everything. Do you know how unnerving it is to watch an enemy slice open your carefully locked door? Even better, do you know how scary it is to have said door thrown at you?" Vader asked as he began cutting a spartan sided hole in the door.

"Just make it quick, the number of people behind that door isn't getting smaller," the Chief ordered.

Vader didn't bother to respond, as he called on the force to help drag his blade through the melting durasteel. After what felt like forever, but probably wasn't much more than a minute, he stepped back- lightsaber still ignited. He threw a glance around to make sure everyone was ready. Seeing that they were, he grabbed a hold of the door with the force and pushed forward as hard as he could. The door launched forward, crushing a heavy turret and the two man team operating it. There was one problem with this area. It was a relatively tight, downward passageway. This was something that he was happy to exploit. Vader dove through the opening as he batted away the lasers. Some went into the ceiling. Some went into the floor, but the majority went back into the defenders. Vader swung his lightsaber in a series of small but precise moves. Upon cutting one man down, he spun his body to the right. While cutting the stormtrooper's carbine in half, he landed a solid kick to the face of a trooper to the left of him. The man went staggering back. Vader paid him no mind. Blue Team was making their way down that side, killing anyone dumb enough not to pull back. That happened to be about everyone. The end of that move was the beginning of his next, as he continued the turn, bringing his lightsaber around into another trooper's chest.

Behind him, the Chief lead the push. One thing became quite clear. These were not just loyal men, but fanatics. Most reasonable people would have retreated to a better defensive point. However, they had chosen this point for their defense and it was clear that this was where they intended to die. Working with the hole Vader had provided he pressed forward. The man in front of him leapt away from Vader's blade. However, he didn't have a chance to catch his balance before the Chief put a three round burst in his chest. A quick adjustment to his aim, yielded another dead stormtrooper. This time it was a bullet into his throat. He would've shot the soldier twice but it gave the tell-tale click of an empty magazine. As he was producing a new magazine from his belt, a stormtrooper lunged at him. In one hand was his carbine- empty of ammo. In the other was the Chief's main concern- a vibroblade. Coming at him from the side, the Chief was caught semi off guard. The pistol grip of the Carbine connected with his face plate. Staggering due to surprise, not the actual force of the hit, he quickly counterattacked. In one smooth move, he swept the carbine away, and bodyslammed the soldier. It took next to no effort to drive him into the righthand wall. At the same time he traded his assault rifle for his fully loaded magnum. The trooper tripped over one of his dead comrades, which caused him to twist and stumble sideways. There was a cry of pain as his right arm (the one with the vibroblade) was pinned against the wall by his own body. He had no time to contemplate the hairline fractures and severe bruising in that arm, as two shots to the side of the head ended his life.

Taking the Chief's place, Fredric continued the push forward. It took some finesse, but he and the rest of the team learned how to use Vader's slices as cover for their own attacks and anticipate his moves. That said, Fredric was forced to duck away at one point when he got a little too close to one of the Sith Lord's cuts. Fredric went from full shields to having his suit beeping that the shields were completely down. However, that wasn't his first clue of trouble. His first clue was the searing heat of the blade grazing the skin on his shoulder. Fighting off the stab of pain, he fell back and let his shields recharge. Behind him, the move had looked like an act of aggression to Kelly. The only reason that she didn't put a bullet through Vader's head was that he payed no mind to the Spartans and moved forward. For the next five minutes they continued to push down the passageway as it continued its descent downward. Soon the troopers quit coming.

"It seems they finally got the message," Kelly commented as they approached an intersection in the passages.

Vader paused for a minute and stared down the other three dark passages, as though daring them to keep their secrets from him.

"No," he finally stated, "that was a delay tactic."

"I'll be the first to say that they made a stupid tactical move, but a division's worth of men is hardly a stalling tactic," Frederic countered.

Vader raised his hand, ending any other attempts at argument with his next words, "Chief. Why don't you plug Roland into that terminal ahead and end this disagreement."

Without waiting for an answer, he turned right and started walking away.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" The Chief demanded.

"To go deal with some personal business. Deal with the weapons," he snapped as he continued walking.

"No you aren't," Kelly stated as she went running after him.

She was almost within arms reach when Vader whipped around with an outstretched arm. Much to both of theirs surprise an invisible force slammed into her, throwing her back twelve feet into the middle of the intersection. What surprised Vader was the lightning that shot from his fingertips. He had never been able to use it with the suit, meaning that this was a whole different experience. The sudden flood of Darkside energy that raced through him was startling as he watched the Spartan crash into the ground. Vader quickly did away with his surprise as he embraced and channeled the anger and hate that fueled this Darkside flood.

Around her, the Spartans quickly raised their weapons. Looking back, no one on that team would ever know what kept them from firing instantly. However, at the moment, it didn't matter as things dissolved into a stalemate. Across from them, a sneer twisted it's way onto Vader's face. However, he kept his lightsaber unlit.

"Kelly?" the Chief asked as he stared down the sights of his rifle.

"I'm good," she replied as she picked herself up.

Despite her response, she was still dealing with residual arcs of electricity coursing through her suit, making it harder to stand up as the suit didn't want to cooperate. Upon grabbing her magnum out of her holster, she gritted her teeth and forced the suit into a standing position under protest from the inner workings of the legs and her flaring shields.

"If you're going to kill me, do it quick. I don't like waiting," Vader barked.

"No," the Chief replied, lowering his weapon.

Vader raised an eyebrow as he failed to contain his surprise.

"We don't have the time. Plus, you set that up," the Chief responded.

By this point, even the other Spartans were giving him questioning looks.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, just like I believe you cut Frederic's shoulder on purpose. You wanted to see where you stood with us. You don't trust us, and wanted to see where the line was," The Chief explained before adding steel to his voice, "However, if you ever touch one of the Spartans again, and I don't care what Fire team they go to, I will kill you. Clear?"

A thin smile replaced the sneer as he replied, "Clear. His name's Jakkar Losac. He's an Inquisitor and damn good one at that. Me and him have some personal matters. Plus, this is the fastest way to the tunnel entry. His presence means that they won't, and don't plan to, scuttle the bombs. If we seal this entrance, we can secure this base quickly."

"I see. We get the main armory and you get to just play with an old friend?" Frederic asked with an annoyed tone.

"No. I cut off their reinforcements and stop them from hauling off with the weapons, while you guys deal with the main armory," Vader corrected.

Before anyone could respond, Vader disappeared down the dark passageway.

With a sigh, the Chief simply plugged Roland into a nearby holoterminal.

"I'll make this quick. The rest of that battalion is in there. Straight ahead and through the next door is a next level catwalk. The way opposite of Vader will give you a bottom floor entry to the left of where the catwalk entrance is," he stated.

"I've got overwatch," Linda stated.

"Good. Kelly, how's the suit?" the Chief asked.

"Green."

"Good. You're with Frederic and I. Let's make this clean and quick. Remember, no frag grenades. We don't need to fumigate this place," he stated as he turned to leave.

With a series of nods they all went about their tasks. As the three were sprinting for the bottom entrance, Linda ran straight ahead with her sniper rifle raised. With the suit's night vision, she had no problems seeing the door coming up. However, she didn't bother to slow her pace. Courtesy of Roland, the door snapped open as she approached.

 _Bang! Bang! Bang!_

The troopers in front of her had no time to react before they each caught a bullet to the head. The first had been just to the left of the door while the other two had been on the other side catwalk, manning a turret. As she rounded the corner, she shot two others, both on the other side with one being in the corner. The ones on her side had a little extra time to react and took a couple futile shots before getting shot themselves. Her shields flared as two of the shots hit home. She did note with concern that it almost took her shields down to half. She didn't have time to dwell on that as everyone down below began firing at her. However, they soon had other issues as the other three Spartans burst into the room.

The shift in attention gave her shields time to recharge as she picked off her first targets. They were two identical white storm troopers manning another one of those turrets right in front of the Chief. The next was a sniper positioned in the cables and steel of the crane across from her. She had to admit he had hidden well. However, the bright red laser gave him away quickly. As the other Spartans rushed through the facility, she picked off anyone that seemed to be causing extra trouble or the couple idiots that decided to take potshots at her. Within a couple minutes it was over.

"Roland, open the door," the Chief ordered.

The response was a hiss as the blast doors opened.

Linda looked back into the scope of her rifle, expecting to have to cover Vader and/or the team. However, they were greeted with an unexpected sight. Two squads of stormtroopers plus a couple black looking robots were laying in pieces on the ground. In some cases the missing limbs were still smoking a little from the cuts. Laying across the small room and against a damaged blast door was a figure clad in black robes similar to Vader. He was slumped against the door clutching the stub where his right arm use to be. The blood and scorch marks on his abdomen pointed to other issues that the man was hiding. Any attempts to hide the pain, though, were long since abandoned as the man gasped for breath and gritted his teeth in pain.

"So much for being 'damn good'," Kelly quipped.

"Oh how the mighty have fallen," Vader sneered as he stood over the man, "I brought you off those streets. I gave you life. I gave you purpose, but that wasn't good enough… No. You had to bite the hand that fed you. It's a shame really. I did like you."

The man spit on Vader's boots as he snapped back between pained gasps, "Burn in hell… you worthless priss… You may have fed me… but-but… I knew who kept us both alive."

With that his eyes rolled back as his eyelids started to flutter shut. Vader let out a low growl. Suddenly lightning shot from Vader's fingertips. The man jolted awake with a yell, or rather a scream, as the arcs of electricity chewed through his tattered robes and cut into his skin.

"Oh no you don't. You don't get the gift of death quite yet. Now where are the weapons?" Vader barked as the lightning continued to cut into the man.

The Spartans looked at each other dumbfounded. Surely the weapons were in the crates. However, after the exchange in the passageway, they weren't about to interrupt Vader's "questioning".

"I- argh!- I won't tell you anything," the man defiantly yelled.

Realizing that he would end up killing the man before getting the info he needed. Vader went for a different approach.

"Who here knows how to patch him up… Same physiology as a human," Vader demanded as he turned to the three Spartans on the ground.

"I do," Kelly replied.

Having been specialized in recon, she had the first aid knowledge that came with it.

"Good. Keep him alive," Vader ordered.

The Chief was tempted to countermand the order and do it himself just to remind Vader that he didn't run the show. However, now was not the time for power struggles and this was one of his more sound decisions.

Before Vader could follow up, the Chief cut in.

"Check the crates and make sure that they did infact clean house," the Chief ordered.

There was a series of nods as the team spread out. Even Linda hopped down from the catwalk to help check them. With help from Roland, they were able to open several of the locked crates and confirm Vader's claims. The crates were there but the troopers had taken off with the bioweapons.

"Their gone," Frederic stated in conclusion.

Vader's lips face formed into a frown as he thought it over.

"Roland, the fleet needs to know," he stated.

"Already done," Roland answered coldly.

The Spartans weren't the only ones that didn't like him. With a nod, Vader turned to the damaged blast door, while igniting his lightsaber.

"Where's the Arbiter?" he asked as he plunged his lightsaber into the door.

"Close. The front line is still a few miles back but they have an a Spec Ops team in the tunnels and in route to take over. ETA's five minutes," Roland answered.

"Good. We'll wait."


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey everyone. INSPIRATION! Ok. Now that I've yelled that at the top of my lungs, here's what it means. I've hit a burst of inspiration these last few days, which means this Dathomir arc will be done sooner rather than later. However, it's going to take a few chapters (at least 1 if not two more after this one).**

 **Despite that, I am trying to make these as good as I can. In doing these (and this story in general) I am walking into a lot of unfamiliar territory (including "Rebels" which is I haven't seen much of and who's role is still in the air). That means that I would love... no, scratch that... I need the reviews now more than ever. Please let me know what you do and don't like. If you think I screwed something up, please tell me (nicely) and I will think about fixing it.**

 **So with house keeping out of the way, I give you chapter 7.**

* * *

As they waited, Kelly went to work on the red skinned Inquisitor. Much to her surprise, the missing arm wasn't an issue as it had been totally cauterized by the lightsaber. However, she did put a tourniquet on it to make sure that there weren't any issues on moving. However, the Inquisitor seemed to have gotten a second wind from Vader's shock treatment, as he was squirming a lot and generally protesting her help. Her shields flared multiple times as he tried to use the force to throw her off. However, he was so injured and weakened that it did nothing but lower her shields a little.

"Damn it. Hold still," she finally snapped as she pinned him to the ground.

Lacking a safe way to put him under, she jabbed him in the one of his side wounds as hard as she dared. She was hoping that the pain would be enough to make him pass out, though she highly doubted it. There was a yell as he squirmed even more. However, it was interrupted as he choked and coughed up blood, and lots of it. It was at this point he fell quiet. Kelly sighed in relief before realizing something. Upon checking his pulse, she swore. He hadn't passed out from pain, he had passed out from his injuries. Reaching in her pack she pulled out the one thing she didn't want to use. She opened up the package on a preloaded adrenaline needle and jammed it into his thigh. She really hoped he was enough like a human. The man didn't move but she felt a some relief as Jakkar's pulse strengthened a little. However, none of this would matter if they didn't replace his blood supply.

"What the hell did he do to you?" she mumbled as she wiped the blood spots from her visor.

"Having issues?" asked Frederic with mock casualness as he walked over to help.

"Yes and if you don't wipe that smirk off from under your helmet I'll do it for you," she snapped as she tried to work.

It was at this point that Vader appeared beside them. Even in his heavy boots, the man was quiet enough that neither person would've seen him coming without their motion trackers. This was something Frederic and the Chief- across the room- noted with concern. Kelly would've been concerned to if she hadn't been preoccupied.

"Will he live?" he asked as he looked over them.

"Only if that Pelican brought the extra blood. He didn't pass out from pain, he's lost a lot of blood. Any human would be dead by now. What did you do to him?" she answered grimly.

"Remember that dent in the door?" Vader asked with surprising casualness as he gestured to what was once a dented blast door.

"Yes."

"He had multiple high speed collisions with it, among other things," Vader finished with a satisfied look, "We need to move, the Pelican just gave the ninety second warning."

As if on cue, several Spec Ops Elites poured into the area. All of them gave Vader icy glares but kept a wide berth. Vader could tell that while they didn't fear him, they held a healthy respect of the power he held. No doubt they had heard what happened to Commander Rtas.

"Understood," Kelly answered as she picked him up.

Not caring about the broken back, she carried him to the roof bridal style with Vader leading and the rest of Blue Team nearby. She had read up on what the Empire had done to the natives and needless to say, there was no love lost between her and the Inquisitor. As they came to the top, two Pelicans touched down on the roof.

Kelly ran to the first one with Vader right behind, while the rest of the team followed in a separate Pelican. The corpsman was waiting at the top of the ramp with an antigrav-stretcher, which was good because Kelly basically tossed the prisoner to him. Striding up with surprising grace, Vader immediately went to the back of the bay. No sooner had he entered, than did the pilot lift off and close the rear hatch.

The ride was tense, as the medic tried to keep the man alive. Vader felt the man's force signature fading slowly but surely. They were headed for the Executor. It wouldn't be that long of a ride, but with the medic unable to do much more than replace the blood that he was losing internally, Vader could only stand in back and wait. Seeing the man broken and dying brought back many memories for Vader, and none were pleasant. In the Clone Wars he had seen many clones and Jedi like this in their last moments as they died, tormented by the pain that they could only escape in death. However, what shook Vader was when it hit him that he had been in this position at one point. He had been a broken shell wishing for death. It was with that, the flashbacks started as the Pelican kept giving way to geysers of fire and rivers of lava. The images settled on Padme struggling under his invisible grasp.

However, instead of her gasps Obi Wan's voice yelled in anguish through his head, " _I loved you Anakin! You were my brother! … How could you?"_

Then like that, the images were gone. Shaken, Vader looked down as he felt his careful mask start to slip. He had never had issues before, but for some reason now, those words drove a stake through his heart as Vader felt himself flood with guilt.

Across from him, Kelly looked over just in time for Vader to lower his head. She wasn't sure but she thought she saw a single tear fall from his stoic face. However, she shrugged it off as she went about her own work. She was suddenly startled by the distinctive _snap-hiss_ of Vader's lightsaber. She reached for her magnum but was startled into freezing as Vader lunged forward. In that split second she had realized that the lightsaber wasn't meant for her but Jakkar. Vader ran the blade straight down into the Inquisitor's chest, killing him instantly.

There was a second of silence as both soldiers tried to figure out what just happened. Then, angered by her work being undone, Kelly confronted him.

"What in the hell was that about?" she demanded as she slammed her fist into the stretcher- much to it's protest.

"We'll find them another way," Vader snapped through gritted teeth as he put away his lightsaber.

"Ya well this was all a waste of time then," she yelled back.

"No it isn't. The Infinity is doing a supply drop. Given all of the troopers in there, I figured you guys could rearm and refit while you were on the Executor. Besides, Commander Palmer can get over herself if she doesn't like it," Vader answered.

"Fine but still, why?" she pressed.

"We won't brake him in time," Vader lied.

It was a sloppy lie that his face and tone gave away. However, he wasn't about to give the real reason why and both sides knew it. She ended up standing by the stretcher while watching Vader carefully. The Medic on the other hand retreated back near the rear hatch. However, unlike most people, he didn't cower, but instead he glared at Vader also and rested his hand on his own pistol. Vader had to admit these Marines were very disciplined.

Vader shook his head as he approached Jakkar's body again.

"What are you doing?" Kelly demanded.

"Getting our info," he stated as he stretched his hand out. The Spartan's shields flared briefly as Vader's fingers brushed the top of the Inquisitor's head.

Kelly watched as Vader seemingly just stood there for a couple minutes. She was about to say something when a frown fell on Vader's otherwise unreadable face. That frown gave way to unhidden anger.

"That bastard!" he yelled as he used the force to smash Jakkar's body and the antigrav stretcher into the rear hatch.

This time Kelly did draw her pistol with the corpsman following suit.

"Stand down or I will shoot," she ordered.

"Is everything ok back there?" the pilot asked through her internal comm.

"Just fly," she ordered before focusing back on Vader, "Breath. I don't want to shoot you but if it comes to us or you, I have no issues pulling this trigger."

It took a few second but Vader stepped back and took a breath. Kelly lowered her pistol. However, she refused to holster it.

"You want to tell me what that was about?" she asked.

"No, but I do need to talk to Commander Palmer when we land," he answered sharply.

The Pelican dissolved into tense silence as the medic straightened Jakkar's body out and examined the damaged antigrav stretcher. During the last two minutes of the flight, Kelly used her internal comm to tell Admiral Piett to wave off the medics and send a couple people to retrieve the body. After what felt like forever the dropship touched down in the hanger. Next two it the Chief's Pelican touched down next to another one that was unloading a couple crates.

Kelly was happy to leave the off loading of the body two a pair of storm troopers as she caught up with her team.

"What's the deal with the prisoner?" Linda asked, noting the fact that the doctors had turned around.

"He's dead. Vader killed him," Kelly growled.

"Wait. He killed him… Just like that?" the Chief asked in surprise.

"Yes. No warning. No explanation. Nothing. He got visibly upset two seconds before, then ran a lightsaber through the person's heart. He refused to truthfully explain why," Kelly confirmed, "However, in theory he got something. Either that or he just thought up some random excuse to smash Jakkar's body between the rear hatch and the stretcher."

"So what now?" Linda asked.

"He needs to talk to the Commander," she replied, "Beyond that I don't know."

"I do," interjected the Chief, "They're picking up a lot of chatter on the comm. channels that they don't like. They want us to get to the command center, lock it down, and figure out what the hell is going on."

"Lovely," Frederic quipped as he grabbed a handful of preloaded magazines from the unloaded crates, "How are things going?"

"Good as can be expected," the Chief answered.

 **(Surface of Dathomir: Western slopes)**

General Veers was one of the few men who actually liked the AT AT walkers. They were big, strong, and better armored than their AT TE predecessors. Sure their long legs presented some balance problems but if the Commanding officer knew his craft, than it was a negligible issue. Second to his love for the AT AT's was that of the Juggernaut Tanks of the same era as the AT TE's and it showed from the thin smile currently plastered on his face.

"Where were these on Hoth?" Commander Appo asked as he entered the driver's comment.

"Focus fire on those gun emplacements. Give those Marines some cover," the General ordered before addressing the white and blue armored Commander, "What would you care? You were enjoying your time shipside."

Commander Appo was about to get defensive when he noticed the glint in the man's eyes.

"Damn right, because when I go in people actually die," he quipped.

"Really? What do you call that," he asked pointing to an exploding bunker.

"Child's play," the Commander deadpanned.

Unlike most people General Veers held a respect for the clones and had forged a tentative friendship with the Commander.

"Ha. How many people do your men kill, and how many are dead from Lord Vader?" the General countered.

The Commander snickered but there was no mistaking the veiled pain in his aging features. Something had triggered in his head.

"Ask the dead Jedi on Coruscant that question," he answered before putting on his helmet and walking out.

General Veer's shook his head. Despite being Vader's second hand man, The Commander alway seemed regretful of that day, not that Veers could blame him. For better or worse, he could understand the pain of killing the people he once served with. While he wasn't privy to the Commander's reason for defecting, he strongly suspected that it heavily involved that day.

"This is Colonel Dawson to Hammer 1, we've breached line one. Scorpions and Warthogs are moving up. I suggest you standby. This revine is ripe for ambush. Let us and your ground team clear first," crackled a voice over his headset.

"Affirmative. Gunners will play overwatch," General Veers agreed.

With that he closed the channel and consulted the tactical map to his right. They were pushing up a canyon that got narrow, the higher up the mountain range they got. The sensors were being glitchy at the moment, which he suspected was just as much due to the locals as it was due to the thick forest they were rolling over. Unlike most forests, those of Dathomir were a tangled mess of thorny branches that reached out in every direction. They seemed, to General Veers, like oversized bushes.

"This is Colonel Dawson. Move it up. You're clear up to the IR marker," he stated.

General Veers frowned for a moment, then with understanding pulled down the Commander's scope. He switched it to infrared and was rewarded with several warm bodies that he assumed were his men and the Marine Colonel's. It took a moment, but he found it, a small dot a mile in front of him.

"Confirmed. We're moving up," he stated.

There was a rumble as the Juggernaut's huge engine revved up. Slowly the tank crawled forward. Sure it could've raced there faster than anything else on the battlefield (with the exception of the Warthogs) but there was safety in caution and the driver understood that.

"Be advised, we have ODST's clearing the westside," Dawson stated, "When they give the all clear, you'll be home free all the way to the deployment sight."

"Confirmed."

The Juggernaut fell silent as it stopped over the IR beacon. General Veers found himself running his palms over the sides of his pants to help with his restlessness. He didn't like waiting. However, he understood the value. His tanks were huge and intimidating. They held the firepower to level a village with no infantry support like the AT ATs he valued so much. However, being so huge also painted a massive target on their backs, especially when fighting Imperials who, no doubt, understood the threat they posed.

Suddenly the silence was broken by several massive explosions. Even a half mile back, the shock wave vibrated the tank.

"This is General Veers to ground what's-"

"Ambush!" Colonel Dawson's voice snapped through the comm, "Check your flanks."

As if on cue lasers and rockets came streaking down from the top of the canyon. He felt the knot of panic rise in his gut. However, he savagely crushed it as he forced himself to assess the situation.

 _Assess. Plan. Execute,_ echoed the words in his head.

They were the words that every tank commander was trained to live by, and they applied even in… or rather, especially in fast paced, fluid situations as an ambush. His eyes took in the entire viewport and the tactical map.

 _Assess._ There was three companies baring down on his flanks, and one -maybe two- charging head on. No doubt they were coming from hidden trapdoors. They were still outnumbered two to one and leaning heavily on surprise to confuse the attackers. However, the Marines and his men weren't taking the bait and were pushing back, hard. His turrets were working best they could but would need direction to be used to their full potential.

 _Plan._ Given his position, the concussion missiles would be useless as they only fired forward. That left the 501st and his turrets. Troops were off the table. They had their own job and couldn't risk the numbers. Turrets it was. He would be of use best on the right flank where there was slightly less dense tree cover. Plus, the left was well under control. Mentally he picked out targets.

 _Execute_. He opened up the comm channels.

"This is Hammer 1 to all unit callsign gunners, standby for target orders," he called out.

With that he began relaying targeting info to each gunner. Outside, the gunners on all three tanks took the info and adjusted their aim accordingly. The change had a devastating effect on the already faltering attack.

From start to finish, the ambush lasted fifteen minutes with relatively few casualties. A couple AT STs and a Scorpion Tank had been blown apart by traps. However, the rest of the sweep was clear as they rolled up on the deployment sight.

As they pulled up, General Veers opened up a separate comm channel.

"Commander, this is your stop. Have fun down there," he announced with a thin smile.

"Understood. It'll be a blast," he quipped dryly.

There was no doubt that he was still sour from earlier.

 _God help anyone that decides to challenge them,_ he thought with a sigh.

Outside, Marine bomb techs were busy setting up shaped charges in three separate spots on the ground as Colonel Dawson's men stood guard. He himself was going between checking around himself and staring at the massive grey behemoth in front of him. It was easily double that of his prized scorpion tanks, but damn was it fast and it had firepower that rivaled that of a Scarab.

However, he was snapped back into focus as a Sergeant approached him.

"Sir, the explosives are set. We're waiting for the go ahead," the man stated.

"Good. Have them standby," he ordered.

As if on cue, a large door toward the rear of the Juggernaut opened to reveal several white armored soldiers. Each one sported blue stripe down the center that was unique to this unit. Immediately, they split into three Brigade sized teams and went to separate sites. At least most of them did. The one in the lead, moved for the Colonel. On his way over, he pulled off his marked and singed helmet to reveal a weather worn and scarred face with black hair that was just starting to show streaks of grey.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Ready when you are, Commander," Dawson replied crisply.

However, there was no mistaking the coldness in his eyes. Commander Appo nodded but narrowed his eyes.

"So we're clear, I don't have to worry about being stabbed in the back when I go down there," he asked, pointing a finger at the Colonel.

"Please. We're Marines not some two bit criminal syndicate," Dawson countered indignantly, "I don't know what kind of people you're use to working with, but we're not them."

Commander Appo simply shook his head, replaced his helmet, and walked away.

Shaking his head, Dawson keyed his comm, "All demo teams"- he waited as the last couple men got in place- "Green light."

A series of concussive blasts shook the area as the explosives blew away or vaporized chunks of dirt. Left in their wake were yawning holes into the tunnel system beneath. The dust hadn't even settled before the stormtroopers began disappearing into the new entryways.


	8. Chapter 8

Commander Appo didn't hesitate before dropping into oblivion. The whole was only a few feet deep, and an easy jump. There was a crunch as his boots hit the debris that riddled floor beneath. Given the ambush earlier, he was surprised that they weren't being attacked upon entry. Raising his carbine, he started forward carefully. Behind him, the rest of the men began pouring in. Suddenly the lights, or at least those not destroyed by the blast, went out and plunged brigade one into darkness. With two rapid blinks, he clicked on the night vision in his helmet. This dealt with the immediate problem. However, he had been in enough operations to know it was indicative of bigger problems.

"Stay sharp," he ordered as he continued forward, "No matter how off the cuff it is, we're all playing from the same book."

"Why do missions like this always seem easier in the briefing room?" grumbled one of the men.

"Lock it up," Appo barked.

At this point the passage raised sharply, and rendered the Commander blind as to what was beyond. Reflexively, he gripped his blaster tighter as he braced for an attack. However, it never came. Instead he was greeted with the same murky green image that he had been looking at for the last several hundred feet. For the next several minutes they continued through the passage unhindered. Two separate depressions ringing the passage marked open sets of blast doors. Finally they came to a four way intersection. Commander Appo walked to the center and then turned to face his men.

"Alright, we've all been briefed on the mission parameters. Clear the tunnels and secure the facilities beneath. Rancor company, you have the left side. Shadow Company, you have the right side. Torrent Company, you're on me," he ordered, "Now move out."

With that the men began to wordlessly move out. After a quarter mile of walking they came on their first locked door.

"Lorell, get that door open," he ordered.

"Yes sir," responded a trooper as he holstered his blaster and sprinted to the door.

At that moment Commander Appo's HUD display on his helmet glitched momentarily. He frowned as it straightened out. The system was self sufficient so it wasn't the distance underground hindering it. That left only two options. One was faulty equipment- which he seriously doubted- or it was the side effect of a high intensity, proximity jammer activating. Appo decided to test his theory and keyed the outside comm channel.

"This is Deployment 1 actual to Command…. Comm check," he stated.

The only response was a crackle in his ear.

Fearing he was right, Appo tried again, "This is Deployment 1 Actual to Command… Please respond."

He waited a full minute, but all he got was the crackle of a non receiving comm.

"Blast it," he swore under his breath, "Looks like we're alone."

However, there was nothing he could do about it. He had his orders. It just meant that he would be blind to other units' progress. Shaking off the tingle of fear in the back of his mind, he focused on the door in front of him.

 **(Infinity Ops-center: Low Orbit)**

Commander Palmer paced from station to station as she silently observed the progress of the assault. Everything was moving smoothly- or at least as smoothly as it could with Vader arbitrarily killing a prisoner chalk full of Intel. Sure he had given them info, and lots of it. They knew the Commander of the base wanted to strike a deal with the Nightsisters. He also found out that the bio-weapons were their ace in the hole. However, Vader had also held info back. It was painfully obvious. However, when confronted, he said he would "reveal it in due time" and cut the connection.

"Ma'am," called a crewman as he walked over to the central holoboard.

"What is it, Lieutenant?" She asked, unable to hide the annoyance eating at her.

"We've just lost contact with all teams inside the range tunnels," the young officer stated as he called up a map of the jagged peaks.

"What about the surface?" she asked with a scowl.

"Sketchy, and we've lost total contact with General Veers and Colonel Dawson," he answered as he pointed to a relatively straight canyon.

"Damn it," she swore under her breath before pressing several buttons on the edge of the board.

She was awarded with the last reported location of every Spartan team in relation to the rest of the units.

"So, is this the Imperials jamming us or did our Commanding Officer strike a deal like Vader predicted?" Commander Palmer asked.

"Don't know Ma'am," he answered carefully, "However, we haven't seen any locals yet that we can tell. Though there have been glitchy sensors that could be linked to them."

Commander Palmer didn't answer but simply nodded as she stared at the map. Instead it was an Ensign from across the room that broke the silence.

"Ma'am, you're going to want to see this," he called.

"What do you have?" she asked as she strode over.

"I ran a deep sensor scan over the area to look for any jammers, and what I got was something much more… interesting. You could say," the Ensign tried explaining.

"There's several various waves pouring out of that mountain," he explained as he keyed up a chart on the screen.

Commander Palmer tried to figure out what she was seeing, but beyond the maze of crisscrossing lines that formed jagged but close together spikes she could see nothing.

"Explain," she prodded.

"Well, each line is a different sound wave. With an old sonar system, we could run over a damn stereo with a warthog and not hear it over this," he stated, "These lines cover a wide frequency band, but it's all to hard to tell what exactly is going on. However, I can tell that everyone in those tunnels is getting quite the earful."

"So they simply aren't hearing their comms?" Commander Palmer asked skeptically.

"No," the Ensign answered as he keyed up another chart, "They're definitely being jammed. Someone has managed to feed in a high intensity jamming signal into it. It's short range but in that range you aren't receiving a damn thing."

"Great. So now that we know what we're dealing with, can we stop it?" she asked.

"I don't know. What I told you is the extent of what I can tell," the Ensign answered.

"Ok. Thank you. Keep an eye on it and tell me of any changes… or at least any that you can see," she ordered before walking away.

"Ma'am?" asked the Lieutenant curiously.

"The next conversation will probably be well above your pay grade," she said before turning around with a sigh, "Hell, if ONI had their way it would probably be well above mine to."

Without waiting for a response she turned back around and left for the bridge. The Ops-center wasn't far from the bridge, but the walk there felt like forever. Commander Palmer didn't even blink as she approached the holotable. Toward the front view port, Admiral Hood and Captain Lasky were caught up in a hushed conversation. She cleared her throat to announce her presence, but otherwise waited. It was at that moment Roland appeared on the table.

"Can I help?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered without skipping a beat, "Open a channel to Admiral Piett, but don't actually contact him until I say."

Roland nodded then answered, "Done."

"I assume this isn't a social call, Commander," Admiral Hood stated upon ending his conversation.

"Yes. I need a word with Admiral Piett, but thought you might want to be present for it," she answered.

"Ok. Anything I need to know first?" the Admiral quizzed.

Obviously he didn't want to go in blind. Commander Palmer gave a quick recap of the situation on the ground and what the Ensign said. Admiral Hood listened with a frown that became more pronounced as the explanation carried out.

"Roland, open the channel," Admiral Hood finally ordered.

"Yes sir," Roland replied as the screen over the viewport switched from black to a view of Admiral Piett's face and crisp uniform.

Commander Palmer started before Piett could speak, "Admiral, I'm not sure what you know but all our units in the Range Tunnels just-"

"Went dark, I know," he answered with obvious annoyance.

However, the Admiral's seasoned eyes and ears picked up something else. It was worry and… knowing?

"Admiral, what is going on. This isn't just some jammer," Admiral Hood demanded.

"I don't know for sure-" he was interrupted as an officer handed him a data pad and whispered in his ear.

The Admiral, Commander, and Captain all watched as he consulted the pad before turning white as a sheet.

"What is it?" Captain Lasky echoed.

"It is a jammer… well sort of… It's a jammer that wasn't designed to do that," he explained, "The Nightsisters have harassed the base as long as it's been here. They were bad enough that contingency plans were put in place in the event of a full on incursion. When I was there they tried developing a way to stun the sisters using sound waves- both ones you could hear and ones you couldn't. It was scrapped but it looks like it was redone."

"Ok. Cut to the point. What are the full effects and how do we stop it?" Commander Palmer quizzed.

Admiral Piett paused for a minute to gather his thoughts before continuing, "Aside from jamming us- which by the way is a new idea- the sound waves will be bad enough to give people with the proper ear protection a migraine level headache. Here's the bad part. Those waves aren't just standard waves. Those without adequate protection- i.e. your Marines- have descended into a special hell of blown eardrums, bleeding ears, and pain on the level of someone literally shoving a dull knife into their skull without killing them."

It was at that point that the gravity of their situation sank in. Even in a separate ship, Piett could feel the tension spike ten fold.

"How do we stop it," Commander Palmer asked with a jarring calmness.

"Blow out the power relays. That system is eating a lot of power- as in the entire base's power. Kick out the relays and it's all over," Piett quickly answered, "And if I'm correct, Commander Appo is already starting on that."

Wordlessly Commander Palmer spun on her heel and ran out of the room, leaving Admiral Hood and Captain Lasky staring at the screen.

"Did you know?" Admiral Hood asked.

"No. They scrapped the program before I transferred out," Piett answered crisply.

"I see," Admiral Hood stated.

He opened his mouth to press the issue, but decided on a different approach.

"Would Jakkar have known?" Hood quizzed.

Admiral Piett was about to answer but stopped short as his eyes narrowed. A tense silence fell over everyone as Piett's face turned unreadable.

"Well, Admiral?" he pressed.

"I'm sorry. I can not and will not answer that," he finally answered before cutting off the transmission.

"Scared man," Captain Lasky mumbled.

"No. He's Loyal," Admiral Hood corrected.

"Should we amend our answer to ONI?" Lasky suggested.

"No. He's fine for now… but the Alliance would be wise to watch him after the Emperor is dead," Hood concluded, "Besides, his eyes told me what I needed to know."

 **(Inside the Range Tunnels)**

Commander Appo ducked as a blaster bolt flew past his head. The space around him was alive with the sounds of combat as both sides traded lasers and grenades. The danger of this was highlighted by the streaks of light that filled the otherwise pitch black room. They were being pinned in by about a company of stormtroopers on a series of catwalks and in and around some stored equipment.

Leaning out from behind a wall, Appo squeezed off several shots in the direction of a sniper. However, it was hard to focus on the Stormtroopers with the high pitch whistle that was cutting through his helmet. It gave him a blinding headache and was starting to affect his thinking. As if to highlight the point, a stormtrooper slipped to his exposed flank. Appo's only warning was the laser that singed his helmet.

"Blast it!" he yelled as he spun to face his attacker.

Without taking time to aim, the Commander filled the space with lasers, knowing that at least a few would hit their mark as he moved for cover. He was rewarded with a barely audible cry as the trooper took a laser just above the heart. Upon ducking behind a hydraulic lift, squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to think. He had felt his helmet constrict as the noise dampeners tried to compensate. It was clear that the actual noise was quite loud.

 _Focus. Know the Enemy. Fight the pain,_ he ordered himself.

A second later he snapped his eyes open and risked a look over the top of the lift. His first clue that he wasn't doing well was when it hit him what he needed to do.

"Focus on that left flank. Drive them against that opposite wall," he ordered, "And Sky?"

"Yes sir?" asked a tired voice.

"Bring me a damn rocket launcher," Appo ordered as he mentally berated himself for missing this.

"Yes sir."

A few seconds later a trooper- hunched over- came sprinting over to him. As he ducked behind the lift with the Commander, he unslung his rocket launcher.

"Here sir," he said as he passed it over with a rocket.

Appo accepted it with a nod and loaded the rocket. With that he dropped to his knees and inched around the edge of the lift. A red laser, suddenly streaked out of the blackness.

"There you are," he mumbled as he took aim.

 _Foosh… BOOM!_

The room lit up with an orange glow as twisted and jagged chunks of flaming durasteel were thrown in every direction. In the light of the explosion, Appo could barely make out the white armor of a few stormtroopers as they were thrown across the room. Commander Appo quickly ducked back and returned the rocket launcher to Sky with a satisfied smirk.

The sudden explosion caused confusion in the Imperial ranks as they tried to figure out the damage. This confusion, however, was all Commander Appo needed to finish the fight. Within five minutes the fight was over, as the last stormtrooper took a laser between the eyes as a mercy killing.

* * *

The Pelican streaked toward the jagged peaks ahead, with an X-Wing as an impromptu escort. The AA fire had been reduced to almost nothing as the troops secured the area above the base. The only risk now was the occasional enemy TIE fighter. Inside, Commander Palmer watched over the pilot's shoulder as the Pelican flew over the tangle of trees and rocks.

"This is Rouge 1. I'm going to have to split off," echoed Luke's voice over the comm.

He sounds even younger on the comm, Commander Palmer thought.

"Understood Commander. Happy hunting," confirmed the pilot.

There was muffled roar as the X-Wing swung over top of the Pelican and opened it's throttle. Soon the Pelican was raising as it matched the grade of the mountain canyon. At this point, Commander Palmer became more attentive as her eyes darted between the scanners and the canyon floor, looking for life among the ruins.

"This is Pelican Bravo 1, requesting that any ground units that hear this response. Over?" asked the copilot over the comm.

The only response was the crackle of static as the pilot left the channel open. Finally after a minute he shook his head.

"Hold it," called the copilot, "... Seismic activity northwest of here about three miles."

"What kind?" Palmer asked.

"Explosion," he answered, "... Three… no four, and they were huge. I have multiple power surges… Damn that's a lot of electricity."

As if on cue several explosions ripped through the canyon walls.

"Shit!" exclaimed the pilot as a boulder slammed into the viewport.

The Pelican shuddered under the competing shockwaves. It quickly shot up as the pilot tried to get out of the competing explosions.

"What happened?"

"Someone caused a massive surge in electricity. From what I can tell, the system couldn't handle it and tore itself apart," the copilot explained.

"This… Commander… anyone... Me?" crackled a voice over the comm.

"This is Pelican, Bravo 1, to unknown Commander. Come again. You're barely coming through," Commander Palmer answered quickly.

"... Appo… 'lay 3… multiple injured… support… thirty-second… non… effective… Spartans…" crackled a voice over the comms.

"Ma'am, I've got a visual on General Veers transports," called the pilot.

Commander Palmer looked over where the pilot was pointing before responding, "Put me down."

* * *

"... Palmer… If you… this… In route…need… happened," crackled a voice through Commander Appo's comms.

Commander Appo shook his head as he surveyed the scene. They were in what was left of a large relay station. The two exits were buried by massive rock and slabs of stones from a cave in that when for who-knows-how-far. The spot lamps of the stormtroopers mixed with the work lights of the five ODSTs to cast a ghostly light on the wreckage. About a squad's worth of troopers and an ODST were in various stages of laying down or sitting on the rubble strewn floor with medics treating their wounds.

"Any luck?" the Sergeant asked as he walked over.

"Sort of. I got a message out to what sounded like Commander Palmer. However, their answer was spotty," Commander Appo answered.

He contemplated peeling off his helmet, seeing as his noise dampeners had relaxed a bit, but decided against it.

"So now what?" asked the Sergeant.

"Wait and make peace with whatever demons we have," Appo answered with a resigned sigh.

 **(North end of the Deep Core)**

The Lambada-Class shuttle touched down on the landing pad. Mara Jade barely gave the ramp time to fall before striding out. She suppressed a shudder as the Darkside washed over her. It wouldn't do for an Emperor's Hand to show any hesitation in front of stormtroopers. As it was she barely acknowledged the guards as she strode into the large grey tower. Inside, the grey continued with dull lighting illuminating the grey wall, grey floor, and grey ceiling, as she rose up through the floors.

Finally after what felt like forever, she arrived at a large blast door flanked by two more stormtroopers. With a nod, the one on the left punched in a code that opened the large blast doors. What she saw next caused her to briefly catch her breath. It was a relatively narrow walkway that extended into a large platform that had a massive control board dominating it. The entire structure was suspended over a spherical cavern that extended for at least a couple hundred feet in each direction. At the controls were five men in white lab coats going between tapping keys on the board, writing things on data pads, and typing on their own equipment. Overseeing them was a man in a grey uniform that ID'd the man as Imperial Intelligence.

"Agent Covak, I trust you have more news than you did over the comms," Mara started as she strode down the platform.

The man briefly stiffened before turning on his right heel and giving a brief bow.

"Yes ma'am," he responded quickly.

"Well?"

"We believe it is a weapon of some kind. However, that's based solely on what we've been able to see. We haven't been able to reliably translate the language yet," he replied.

"I see. Are we talking a Star Destroyer type-"

"No," Covak answered quickly, "The energy readings are more on par with the Death Star."

This got Mara's attention.

"I see. Have you run into anything unusual that I should know about?" she quizzed, knowing the answer.

"Yes," he replied as he called up a map, "In this northern region. We've run into an area that is very tightly locked down. I have men moving heavy munitions into the area here"- he pointed to a spot below the surface- "They should be ready to breach soon."

"No," Mara commanded, "They will not. Move incendiary weapons into the area and rotate your guards all to that area. However, do not make entry until you have things translated."

He blinked in surprise, "Ma'am? Is there something I need to know about?"

"No. However, there is plenty that the Emperor needs to know. You have your orders. I expect regular updates," she answered before walking out of the control room.

With a shrug, the Agent went to carry out his orders.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey everyone. Here is the next chapter. First I wanted to say thank you to everyone who reviewed. I'm glad you guys are enjoying it. Please keep them up (be it praise or criticism). Second, this is fair warning that I am making a relatively minor change to Thrawn's backstory, but nothing that effects what is cannon. Third, I will say that if you can't figure out what the Empire has found after reading this chapter than you need to be doing some serious homework. :)**

 **Anyway, without further ado, I give you chapter 9:**

* * *

 **(Edge of Chiss space: 25 years ago)**

Captain Mitth'raw'nuruodo- later known as Thrawn- watched as the refitted Corellian bulk freighter raced out of the system. It was spitting fire from the half dozen gashes Mitth'raw'nuruodo had put in it. The lasers flying from it's last remaining quad cannon weren't much more than an annoyance as Thrawn ran down his prey.

"Focus fire on the energy source toward the back," he ordered.

"Yes sir," replied the Lieutenant in charge of the fire control center.

A thin, predatory grin formed as a particularly violent explosion racked the freighter. However, he was annoyed to realize that the cannon operators had been off on their aim by a couple degrees. The fact that the ship was still moving was the main clue.

"Sir, the ship is preparing to jump to hyperspace," reported his Executive Officer.

"Follow him," Thrawn ordered, knowing that that was easier said than done.

"Sir?" asked the Chiss Officer.

By this point it was more of a confirmation than a surprise. He, like the rest of the crew, had long ago accepted the Captain's morally questionable tactics.

"You heard me Mitth'ord'orack," Thrawn answered coolly, "This is the last time we deal with these barbarians."

"Yes sir," he replied before relaying the proper orders for the jump.

Within seconds of their prey, they had made the jump to hyperspace. A week later it was obvious that they had not quite made the jump correctly and came out a couple parsecs away, not that it mattered. The freighter's failing navigation system had failed to warn them of a small planet in their path and the resulting impact was hard enough to alter the planet's orbit by a small amount. However, Thrawn and the rest of the crew had quickly forgotten the pirates in favor of the massive ring that was staring them down.

"What is that?" asked the Executive Officer as his mouth hung partially open.

The Chiss's question was met with silence as Thrawn and the rest of the bridge stared in awe. Whatever it was was easily the size of a planet.

"Get me environmental scans and prepare a landing team. I will lead it personally," Thrawn finally ordered as he fought to contain his own awe.

The next few hours were spent pouring over environmental scans as Thrawn determined where the teams would land. He had about a hundred men at his disposal and intended to use everyone of them.

"We'll make landfall here and here," he stated as he pointed to a stone temple dominating the surrounding lake and a massive grey tower seven miles to the northwest, "Bring in breaching equipment. I want to know what they're hiding in those tunnels."

"Yes sir, but shouldn't pull back and report the find to command?" asked the Executive Officer.

Captain Thrawn snickered, "We will when we have something to report."

Have something to report they would. The first day and a half were spent exploring the two structures. In this time they were able to determine that the ring was infact a massive weapon. However, things quickly went to hell went the temple team breached the tunnels.

"This is Temple 1 we've got unknown contacts… Argh!... Definitely hostile… Blast it!... They-" the commander's voice faded into blaster fire as he focused on the unknown enemy.

"Commander, report. What's going on?" Thrawn pressed, "They what?"

The only response was the crackle of an open comm channel.

"Commander?" Thrawn demanded as he fought to keep the fear out of his own voice.

He was about to try again when a slithering noise echoed through the control room. Everyone, including Thrawn, visibly pailed. That noise was definitely not natural, nor was it far away.

"You five," Thrawn ordered as he singled out five of the soldiers, "You're with me, we're getting that key. Sergeant, get that info on a data pad and get some landing ships down here. It seems we've overstayed our welcome."

Thrawn didn't wait for an answer as he immediately ran for the door. What happened next was a nightmare that would always haunt the young Captain, even if few people ever learned the full truth.

 **(Kentara Station: 25 years later)**

Emperor Palpatine could feel the fear begin to roll off the Admiral as Jade gave her report. Behind and to his left, the blue skinned Admiral was whispering urgently into his comlink. If he didn't know better he would've guessed that Thrawn didn't know what kind of hot water he was in, but the Emperor could sense that whatever Thrawn was doing it would be revealed quite soon. However, Jade's hesitance was a different matter.

"I do not see need for delay. Begin your entry now," he ordered.

"No!" Thrawn practically yelled before quickly bowing his head, "Forgive me. It's just that I must warn you that there are some giants best left sleeping."

"Admiral, have care what you say. You are not exactly in my good graces," Palpatine hissed, "Is there something you wish to add to this discussion?"

Thrawn was spared an awkward explanation as the door behind them chimed.

"Enter," the Emperor ordered as he used the force to unlock the door.

The door hissed open to reveal a young officer who was clearly nervous. The officer briskly walked to the center of the room before dropping onto a knee in a bow.

"What do you need?" the Emperor asked in a deceptively calm voice as he chose to ignore the datapad in the officer's hand.

"I have a message from orbit for the Grand Admiral, my lord. It's labeled 'Eyes Only'," he replied.

"I don't want it," Thrawn spoke up, "but the Emperor does."

With that the Emperor used the force to grab the pad from the man's hands before sending him out. The room was plunged into silence as both Mara Jade and Thrawn waited. One didn't need the force to feel the tension rise as the Emperor read the info he was given. Finally after several minutes he broke the silence.

"The index, Admiral?" Emperor Palpatine demanded.

"I don't remember the location… I think it was in a library of sorts," Admiral Thrawn answered hesitantly.

He forced himself not to squirm as the Emperor probed the edges of his mind with the force. It was a decidedly not pleasent experience but he also knew it wouldn't last long. Finally, the Emperor got a satisfied look before turning to the red haired woman on the hologram.

"Return to Byss. I will give you orders enroute… and put Agent Covak and Vice Admiral Drammin on," he ordered before turning to Admiral Thrawn, "You have spared your life for the moment. Return to the fleet. I expect to see results, soon. Dismissed."

Thrawn wavered for a second. as a knot of dread formed in his gut. However, with no real info to back his point he stood no chance trying to protesting what he knew would be the Emperor's orders. Instead, he drew himself to his full height before bowing his head and moving for the door.

"Admiral," Emperor Palpatine called, stopping him mid stride, "You wanted extra warships, you'll get them."

Following military protocol to the letter, Admiral Thrawn turned and bowed his head again as he responded, "Thank you, My Lord."

Without another word, he worked his way to his flagship while mentally praying to every deity he could think of.

 **(SSD Executor: low orbit over Dathomir)**

"How bad?" Vader asked as he stared at an aerial image of the mountain range.

The smoke billowing out from the tunnels didn't even begin to do the situation justice.

"Bad sir," Piett answered evenly, "We've lost contact with the Marine 32nd regiment, 3 Spartan teams are unaccounted for, and we only have partial contact with the 501st infantry legion."

Despite Piett's even tone, Vader could sense the anger and sense of betrayal eating at the man.

"I see," Vader answered.

The two of them stared at the image with neither of them wanting to break the silence.

"Jakkar didn't know," Vader finally announced.

"Sir?" Piett asked in confusion.

"You're angry. You think I walked everyone into that. I didn't. That system was not in his memories. You should know that we keep their info on the need to know. It is protection against a crisis of conscience," Vader answered calmly.

"I see, My Lord," Piett answered crisply.

Vader could sense the man calm down slightly as he processed the info. Another silence fell over them as Vader walked, or rather shuffled over to the viewport. Now that the adrenaline from the fight was gone, the pain was setting in in levels he hadn't felt in years- around twenty to be exact.

"What is the status on Luke," Vader asked finally.

Piett keyed up something on a data pad before answering, "Just southeast of the range, doing a slow loop around that end of the range to see if he can find something, and… hold on… he found something. He's putting down for a closer look. An Alliance Commando team is moving to meet him."

Vader felt an uneasy sensation ripple through the force. He frowned. There was danger, but it wasn't close or aimed at him. It was aimed at… _Luke_.

"Tell him to hold at the site until the team gets there. Something is wrong," Vader ordered.

"Yes sir. Is there anything else I should tell him?" the Admiral asked.

"No," he answered before changing the subject, "Detail all available teams to help with search and rescue."

"Yes sir. Units are already beginning work," Piett answered crisply.

"Good."

* * *

Obi Wan watched as look put his X-Wing down in the small clearing. Looking ahead, he saw no immediate danger. However, the concentration of the Darkside was making anything beyond visual observation hard. He cringed as Luke climbed out of his fighter. He already knew what was Luke had found and he really wished he could spare Luke, but the kid needed to see it if only to prepare him for what was coming.

"Be mindful of your thoughts," he warned.

While Luke couldn't see him, Obi Wan knew that he would hear it.

He was forced to swallow his pride, among other things, as he added to his statement, "Be mindful of what Vader has told you. He can sense what I can not, here," Obi Wan added as he tried to penetrate the fog and see what Vader had sensed.

Luke simply nodded as he put his helmet in the cockpit. However, the surprise and skepticism rang through the force loud and clear.

"Come on R2. I might need you," he heard Luke state.

There was a response of protesting whistles as the droid removed itself from the fighter.

* * *

Luke kept on hand close to his lightsaber as he picked his way through the tree limbs and underbrush toward the stream of smoke. As he got closer, he got a feeling of dread as the smell of burnt flesh started to fill out his nose. After a long five minutes he reached a small clearing- to small for his X-Wing- and about threw up. At the far end was a large rock outcropping with tree limbs and roots snaking over the side. Below it was the remains of what was once a very hot and large fire. Above that and hanging by the neck, was a man in the uniform of what Luke judged to be an Imperial General. However, it was hard to tell as his body and uniform were burnt and his face, or what was left of it, was nothing but a bloody mess that mixed into his matted and disheveled hair.

At that point he probably would've thrown up if the hair on his neck hadn't suddenly stood up. He spun around in time for a face shrouded in a green mist to shoot out of the trees at him. Startled, Luke stumbled backward into the body, which caused him to jump and stumble more as he brought his lightsaber to life and tried to recover.

On top of the outcropping, the figure materialized into a tall, black and white faced woman with a large flowing red gown.

"So you're the boy," she hissed in a surprisingly loud voice, "Tell me… Whom are you a slave to?"

"I'm no one's slave," Luke snapped with a cold edge that was startling, even to himself.

He didn't know why but those words had cut deep for some reason.

 _Careful Luke. Your feelings will betray you. Take it from me, Mother Talzin loves her games_ , Obi Wan's voice echoed in his ear.

She let out an evil laugh, "You fool, you're all slaves to someone."

Luke bit back a response. He could tell he was being bated. She was looking for some reason to kill him.

Instead he cut to the point, "What is it that you want?"

Her evil smile turned into a look of mock hurt as she stepped, or rather floated, off the rock face and toward him. In response, Luke backed up as he raised his blade into guard position.

"What you don't want to chat?" she asked as she ignored the glowing blade inches from her,"... No matter. Tell your father that I wish to speak with him alone. We have some old business to discuss. Then _you_ and I can talk of peace."

Luke's eyes narrowed. He didn't need the force to tell him that she planned for only one person to walk away from her "chat" with Vader

"Why should I do that?" he demanded as he rose his blade to emphasize his point.

She let out a small chuckle. However, there was no mistaking the malice in it.

"Because, the General's negotiations failed spectacularly," she answered as she faded away.

"So what will it be, boy?" her voice echoed as the green mist faded away into the thick forest.

As if on cue, seven men in camouflage and body armor came crashing through the brush with blasters raised. Seeing Luke was alone, the Commandos lowered their weapons.

"Everything alright?" the Sergeant asked as he broke away from his squad, "We heard another voice and it didn't sound friendly. We got here as quick as we could, but Sorro got us turned around somehow."

Luke could tell that he was purposely ignoring the dead body behind him.

"Ya, I'm fine. I had a run in with our neighborhood witch. That was all," Luke answered with mock casualness.

What he didn't tell them is that he thought Talzin may have been the one that got them turned around.

"Ah. I see. I hope it was productive," the Sergeant answered, mirroring Luke's tone.

At the same time his eyes were running over every inch of Luke, looking for any hint of injury.

"Ya, but I need to get a hold of command," Luke answered with a renewed seriousness.

 **(Home One: Low orbit)**

Leia listened with Mothma and Admiral Ackbar as Luke gave his report. Also on the hologram was Vader, the Arbiter, and Admiral Hood, with each listening from their respective ships.

"... She definitely represents a threat to anyone that crosses her. However, her anger appeared to be directed at Vader. She specifically asked to 'discuss' some 'old issues' with Vader. Than singled me out as the person she would discuss peace with," Luke explained.

"Out of all of the factions and people here, why you?" Leia asked.

"Because he's young, and not Imperial. She thinks he is more gullible and that she can use him to play everyone," Vader cut in.

"Perhaps we can use this apparent misjudgement to our advantage," the Arbiter suggested.

"No. I tried that once. It nearly killed me, and a twenty year old Inquisitor was never seen again," Vader answered.

"It sounds as though negotiation is our only option," Mothma resigned.

At that moment, Admiral Piett appeared briefly as Vader whispered something in his ear. With a nod, the man disappeared and the conversation continued as more suggestions were thrown out and promptly shut down for various reasons.

"Admiral," called one of the bridge officers, "the Chimerea is breaking pattern and moving toward the surface."

"Starboard guns are charging… just passed 90 percent… fully charged," added another Calamari officer.

"Vader, what are you doing?" Leia demanded.

"Giving her a message," Vader answered glacially.

"No," leia snapped back, "We don't do wholesale slaughter."

"This isn't slaughter. This is making a point. An Aldereanian of all people should know the difference," Vader retorted.

Leia clenched her fists as she glared at the cold, yellow eyes on the hologram. It was clear Vader hadn't even bothered to hide what he was referencing.

"Vader don't," she growled as she shifted her eyes between Ackbar and Admiral Hood.

At this point Hood gave orders off screen before turning his attention to Vader.

"Tell the Chimerea to stand down. This is your only warning," Admiral Hood ordered.

Vader never looked at the Admiral but turned his attention to Leia and Luke.

"You think their innocent?" he demanded, "They kidnap their own people and force them into combat and slavery. Their leader is a self obsessed monster who would happily kill us all without a second thought. I've seen the worse these people have to offer. For as horrible as that monster was, Grievous will always hold a special place for teaching Mother Talzin a lesson she would never forget."

Mothma felt sick at the mention of Grievous with her respect of Vader hitting an all time low. She knew what that monster had done to Anakin- or rather Vader- and others during the war and couldn't, or didn't want to, believe what she was hearing. However, the Arbiter spared the need for her to respond.

"And I'm willing to bet that's why we're here," the Arbiter interjected.

"No it's not. Believe me, very little has changed in the last twenty plus years," Vader countered.

"Vader…" echoed Admiral Hood.

Vader finally seemed to register the Admiral's words.

"Fine, I'll do things your way, but the Chimerea stays where it's at," he grudgingly conceded.

There was a period of tense silence as the Chimerea came to a stop a little ways above the atmosphere. Finally after what felt like forever the tension began to release.

"So what are we going to do about this 'Mother Talzin'?" the Arbiter finally asked.

"Actually, I think I have an idea," Luke spoke up.

After seeing that he had everyone's attention, Luke explained his idea. Everyone listened with skeptical and thoughtful frowns as he laid it out.

"It's… Interesting," Mothma stated, "Certainly not your craziest."

"I like it," Vader answered.

"It could work as long as long as we can keep her occupied," Admiral Hood responded thoughtfully.

"I don't see that we have much of a choice," Admiral Ackbar added.

There were general nods of agreement, seeing as the Admiral had summarized everyone's thoughts. With reluctance everyone agreed before launching into the finer details of the plan.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey everyone. Well, after much planning, scrapping, more planning, copious amounts of caffeine, and much research, I have the next chapter. Now, I know that this chapter jumps around a bit with timing, but please bare with it. Things are moving very fast and happening pretty much on top of each other. Also, I know that this chapter will probably raise more questions than it answers but I promise everything (in theory has a plan). That said, please ejoy and remember to review. I love hereing what you all think.**

 **One last note: Part of the delay has been because I finally decided that a beta reader would be a good idea as I seem to do my best editing after posting the chapter. So, if you are interested or if you know someone who would, please message me. I need help with spelling, grammar, and characterizing and am willing to listen and work with someone.**

 **So now that that is all said, without further ado, I give you chapter 10.**

* * *

 **(UNSC Space)**

The ISD Krayton drifted on reserve power within the nebula. Inside the bridge Captain Cordell started paced the dimmed bridge as he read the intel briefing. All except necessary lights and support functions had been killed, with most of the power sitting in the shields and life support. All non passive sensors had been turned off, not that it mattered. The nebula rendered them useless. He was heavily counting on the nebula hiding them from their enemy. Not that it mattered. He was a galaxy away from his own home, and there was no help to be found. Hell, even if there were other ships in this galaxy, he didn't know, nor did he want to know where they were. He couldn't give up what he didn't know. Only two hours ago, he had restored power to the forward hangar bays, and that would only be for so long.

"Sir, flashcomm just came in," announced his Executive Officer as he held out a data pad.

"Thank you," the Captain acknowledged as he shifted his attention from one pad to the other.

Flashcomms were an age old idea that had just been brought to fruition a year ago. They were specially coded, extremely low frequency, messages that could be transmitted across space at mind boggling speeds. What was even better was that they were impossible to intercept without specialized equipment. This one from Kentara Station was only two minutes old.

With a sigh, Captain Cordell read the dispatch. It wasn't good news but it wasn't as bad as he thought.

"Might I ask how things are?" asked the Executive Officer.

"The fleet at Dathomir got their heads handed to them as the Admiral expected. Their ships were formidable, their officers quite competent," Captain Cordell paused as he forced himself to accept words that he was about to say, " and they had better numbers."

There was a pause as the Officer, barely past twenty-six, processed what he heard. His face briefly warped into disbelief. No one had better numbers than the Empire, surely when they were so isolated.

"So what does that mean for us?" asked the officer with a nervous waver.

"Nothing. We are to proceed as planned. Bring the sublight engines on line. Bring us to the outer line and retract all TIEs," Cordell answered before turning to the intership comm, "Commander Travaux, come to the bridge immediately."

With a nod, the Executive Officer began issuing the necessary orders.

After a couple minutes a compact, clean shaven man walked briskly to the board before giving a brief but crisp salute- or at least as crisp as his flight suit would let him. The ship had been sitting on yellow alert for the last several weeks which meant that all personnel on duty were at their stations and pilots spent their shift in their flight suits ready to leave at a moment's notice.

With that the Captain gave the Commander his briefing and discussed if and what changes would be necessary to their plan.

"So no changes?" the Captain confirmed.

"No. It'll just be dicey getting in and hell getting out. Don't expect a lot of returning pilots," Travaux answered.

"Understood. Happy hunting," Captain Cordell concluded, "Dismissed."

With a nod, the Commander turned and left the bridge. Ten minutes after that they were enroute to their target- designation "Gift 1".

 **(UNSC Red Dawn: Earth Defense Grid)**

The Captain stared out the bridge viewport as he watched, with boredom, the seemingly endless stream of ships enter and leave the system. Being one of the frigates on the picket line, he had a job that was as important as it was boring. As they told him upon entering, "It's all fun and games until you actually have to do something." Despite what his roll of the eyes at the time, he understood very well the importance of his job. The grid had been breached once, and the UNSC intended for it to be the last time.

"Captain," called a sensor operator.

"What is it?" asked the Captain as he approached the officer's station.

"I've got multiple contacts… umm"- the officer tapped his screen as it started glitching- "Thirty seconds- no ten… umm-"

"How many and what size?" asked the Captain.

"Twenty-seven, all about the same size as a fighter-,"

"Sir," called his Executive Officer as he hurried over, "Multiple contacts just entered the system right in the middle of our grid."

"Bring us up to red alert and close the distance to the fleet. Keep sensors outward and look for other contacts," the Captain ordered.

There was an instant response of red emergency lights and muffled alarms while the ship swung around closer to the main fleet.

* * *

Commander Travaux watched his monitor's and HUD closely as the proximity alarm in his Skipray started going off.

 _Jammers up. Shields up. Guns unlocked and powered. Extra power to thruster relays._ he ticked off mentally.

"All wings out… now!" he called through his comm.

At the same time, he yanked the hyperspace stick back. The space around him wasn't even fully materialized before he started dumping the extra power into his thrusters. As the streaks gave way to real space he yanked up on his steering yoke. The ship jerked up as it came within inches of plastering itself on the hull of a frigate.

All around him, the other twenty-six Skipray assault boats made the same dangerous entry.

"Keep it tight," he ordered as he ducked under an orbital MAC.

With guarded relief, he sighed as the fleet very quickly gave way to the brown and green landmass below. With renewed vigor he slowed by a measurable amount as skyscrapers became visible in the near distance, and redirected that power into the shields.

"Alright boys, weapons free," he ordered before switching to his internal comm and addressing his copilot, "Get working, our time's limited."

"Already started," came a measured reply.

 _That one will due,_ Travaux thought as he launched a pair of incendiary rockets. He hadn't even bothered with the targeting computer. The building was impossible to miss. He swung sideways and descended toward the crowded street as fiery explosions rocked his fighter. Down below, panicked hordes of people went screaming as they raced to escape the flaming debris and attacking fighter.

After thumbing his weapon selection to his forward laser cannons, he squeezed the trigger and willed himself not to think of what he was doing. Within second of starting the attack, he was letting off a set of proton torpedoes as he pulled up in the hunt for more targets.

The next two minutes belonged to the Skiprays as they raced through the city creating as much destruction and havoc as possible.

* * *

Lieutenant Dawson was pushing his Broadsword as hard as it would go as he rapidly entered the Atmosphere, his targets were a good three minutes straight ahead. All around him his radar showed fifteen plus fighters racing in behind him. Seeing this he couldn't suppress a small grin. There was going to be hell to pay for this stunt.

* * *

Commander Travaux threw his Skipray into a hard turn as he fired his flares. His eyes widened as the bottom of his fighter sideswiped the building much to the protest of about every system in the fighter.

 _BOOM!_

Air to air missile, confused by the sudden turn and flares, slammed straight into the building. By this point the city's air defenses were starting to respond, and it was actually making this flight interesting. He swung around and found the offending missile launcher.

* * *

The Marine watched with a mix of horror and frustration as his missile slammed into the building. He set his jaw in determination as he went for another lock on the offending fighter. However, before he could get a lock his eyes and mind gave him another warning. The fighter was suddenly closing the distance to him fast.  
"Power increase… Move!" he yelled to his partner as he propelled himself out.

On the other side the Marine hit the deck as a concentrated stream of lasers ripped through the launcher. The weapon went up in a ball of fire that left both soldiers dazed and barely able to hear through their ringing ears. However, both were glad that that was the worst of their injuries. If the pilot had hit any further back, they would've hit the unfired missiles and blown off the top three levels of their building.

* * *

"Heads up we've got fighters inbound- ten immediate and seventeen in the wings," called a pilot through Travaux helmet comm.

"Confirmed Red leader. Switch priorities. Keep them busy," he ordered before switching channels, "Hurry it up. It's about to get real lonely really fast."

"Working on it. This isn't the easiest one I've worked with," answered his copilot as he bit off each word.

"Just do what you can and leave what you can't," Travaux ordered as he thumbed over to his main cannons and threw the ship into a hard right turn.

"Blue 1 to all Blues scatter form. Let's draw them into the chaos," Travaux ordered after a couple seconds.

Ahead, several UNSC fighters were closing the distance. Soon Travaux's ship started beeping as the broadswords tried to get a missile lock. Soon there were streaks as the missiles let loose.

* * *

Dawson watched as the large fighters continued their rush forward with relatively little maneuvering as the missiles raced toward them. He would've been confused if it weren't for the green lasers that lit up the space around him. He launched his fighter into a roll as he ducked and weaved through the lasers. To his left, a Broadsword went down in a fiery explosion as lasers perforated his cockpit and two of the left side missiles.

As the enemy fighters streaked by, he realized that only about half of the missiles had hit home. He frowned as he swung his fighter around. Then it dawned on him.

"This is Alpha 1, watch for secondary gunners,"

* * *

For the next several minutes the battle raged as the fighters chased each other down. However, the element of surprise was quickly lost in favor of sheer numbers and the Skiprays were slowly but surely being ticked off. More than one had gone down into a building or simply been blown apart as multiple missiles overloaded the shields. Finally after an agonizing ten minutes, there was good news for the Imperials.

"I've got what I can. Get us out of here," called Travaux's copilot as the fighter swung around a half destroyed building.

"Good. All wings. Scatter out. We have what we came for," he called as he yanked up on his control yoke.

The response was a little slow from a singed relay but none the less, the fighter shot up toward the freedom of open space. He felt his gut churn as only two fighters called in. The commander caught his breath as he saw his shield level. This was going to be damn near suicidal. As he expected, he had tails after him and the dangers of the ground promptly gave way to the dangers of space as the area around him became flooded with flak that was nearly impossible to get through. To his left, he watched as his wingman took a missile straight up the thrusters. The resulting blast killed everyone instantly as the ship was engulfed and ripped apart by the fiery explosion.

I need less weight, he thought as he pushed the fighter for more speed.

Reluctantly he began dumping off his leftover proton torpedoes and air-to-surface missiles, not caring if he hit something. The missile lock alarm suddenly shrieked to announce a solid lock.

* * *

Dawson forced himself to limit his bobbing and weaving as he tried for a lock on the enemy fighter. If there was anything he had learned, it was that those things could take one hell of a beating which meant he would need to be dead on.

He was surprised and taken aback when the fighter started dropping ammunition at seemingly nothing. It created brilliant streaks and flashes of light as the fighter started pulling away slowly.

"Oh no you don't," he mumbled as he dumped more power into the afterburners.

He quickly connected what the fighter was doing, and it was clear that the person was good but desperate at this point. As Dawson went for a missile lock he watched on his radar as three friendly dots closed from in front and to the right of the fighter. He focused back on his target computer as it signaled a solid lock. He pressed the button and watched as two missiles took off for the target.

After several seconds of spinning, ducking, weaving, the fighter fired his flares and shot forward and down. However, there was a brilliant explosion that replaced the fighter. For a brief heartbeat, Dawson thought he had killed it. Instead he got to watch as the fighter, trailing impossible amounts of smoke, vanished.

 **(ISD Relentless: Installation 09: 6 hours earlier)**

Admiral Drammin listened as his bridge crew fed him endless streams of information with only the captain keeping it from descending into chaos. Around him red, flashing emergency lights added to the sense of urgency and panic.

"Sir, shields down ten percent…"

"Flood forms have breached hangar two…"

"... teams on the Bloodhound have gone dark…"

"Captain Tyro is reporting flood forms on decks 8 and 9…"

"... Control room is lost…"

"... Stalker's Reactor Room has been breached... "

These were the barely disciplined reports of a crew grappling to salvage a situation that was lost before the first shot had been fired, and the young Admiral wasn't sure what he could do. He had already pulled his ships away from the ring and quit taking in ships from the surface. That meant that he couldn't provide close in support for surface operations, not that it mattered anyway. The men at his disposal were woefully inadequate and getting slaughtered faster than they could retreat. They had expected a tough fight, but this was something totally different. Clenching his jaw he forced his inexperienced mind to make a decision.

"Tell all ships with bridge control to cut off hyperspace routes and fire on anything that tries to escape. Captain, bring us about portside. I don't like the moves that Interdictor is making at point four-two-one. Redirect fighters to shut down those shuttles. No ships should be leaving the surface," he finally barked.

There was a flurry of activity as the crew rushed to respond to his orders. Silently he cursed. He was young, this being one of his first missions as an admiral. The only reason he had been selected for this mission was because he had been ported at Coruscant when the ring was found.

"Sir, the Stalker's hyperdrive is powering up," reported one of the officers.

Admiral Drammian's eyes drifted to the tactical board just long enough to confirm his place in the battle before he replied.

"Stop him," he called as he felt a lump form in his throat as he reached for the ship to ship comm.

The captain of the Stalker was an old friend of his.

"This is the ISD Relentless to ISD stalker, stand down. I repeat stand down now or you will be fired on," he ordered.

There was a pause as he waited, but the only sound he heard was the sound of the crew working frantically.

"ISD Stalker, can anyone hear me?" he pressed as he steeled his voice.

By this point, the Interdictor had long since been forgotten as the Relentless's heavy turbolasers hammered the Stalker's already heavily damaged shields.

 _Damn it, Captain, respond,_ his mind screamed.

"Sir, flood forms have breached the bridge tower," a Lieutenant reported.

 _What?! How?! That's impossible! This is a Star Destroyer not a damn pirate ship!_ He started to panic before crushing it and resigning to his situation.

"Pull all security teams to the rear of the ship. Keep us operational, and divert all available power to the turbolasers," he ordered as he drew his service blaster.

Facing imminent death, he found a new vigor as he directed the battle with the Stalker. By this point the both ships were flaming from several hull breaches as the Relentless and the Stalker refused both refused to die. The only reason they hadn't jumped yet was because he had forced the Stalker to turn portside and as such make a different jump. However, now it was getting ready to jump again as the Relentless struggled to shut down it's well buried hyperdrive.

"Sir, hyperdrive is powered, jump in-" started the Captain.

He stopped as Drammin silently, but aggressively ordered him to shut up. He really didn't need a blow by blow of his failure. As if to highlight it, the twin blast doors hissed open as three- or what was left of three squads sprinted into the bridge with the blast doors shutting behind them. They quickly went to work preparing for a fight. However, Drammin had a different idea.

"Captain. By definition given in Imperial Naval Code Part 3- Chapter 2- section B, I am declaring this ship 'Terminal'. Activate scuttling charges," Admiral Drammin ordered gravely.

"Yes sir," answered his Captain before he quickly gave the orders.

After an agonizing minute, the Captain turned to Drammin, "Ready at your command, sir."

Drammin caught his breath as he felt the weight of what he was doing. However, the sound of one of the outer blast doors being forced open snapped him back to reality.

"Let's return these bastards to which ever one of the seven hells they came from."

 **(Dathomir, Relay 3: range tunnels)**

Commander Appo felt his breath growing shallow as the air in the room continued to grow thin. By this point the noise had gone, there for he removed his helmet and decided he would try to enjoy the silence and what he would assume was his last meal- a crispy, crappy tasting ration bar. Hell, this was such the momentous occasion he decided to crack open two.

However, he stopped mid bite as the sound of grinding and moving rock began to echo at the edges of his hearing range. Everyone- assuming they were hearing things- finally perked up with the faint rumble of machinery. It steadily grew louder as the moments ticked by. After what felt like forever, shattered rocks shot across the room or were grinded into dust as a plasma borer tore through into the room. Appo was forced to shield his eyes from the massive work lights as the machine powered down. A figure quickly appeared, silhouetted against the blinding lights. However, the figure was quite familiar. It was a tall, fit Togruta- more than likely female.

As Appo's eyes adjusted, he raised his blaster to ready-low as he stared in disbelief.

"Who are you?" he demanded, though it came out in an almost croak.

The person seemed taken aback and seemed to struggle for words. By this point, the ODST's and stormtroopers that could stand were all up with weapons raised trying to figure out what was going on.

"It's me, Commander… Commander Ahsoka Tano," she replied as she tried to step forward.

"Don't," he barked as he raised his weapon, "I don't want to hurt you. Please leave."

She froze.

"Look, we're on your side. I need you to trust me," she pressed.

Commander Appo suddenly felt a flood of guilt and regret wash over him as he replied, "No. That can't be, after-"

"Commander," called General Veers as he appeared next to Ahsoka, "Relax. She's with us for the moment. Alliance Command has told her that the bodies don't get to pile up yet."

Appo nodded as he reluctantly lowered his blaster, and by default so did everyone else. Though he still kept his distance as though she was some sort of hazardous material. All of the years had not erased his memory of her lightsaber skills and he really didn't want to think of how much a life on the run had improved them.

"How did you get here anyway?" he finally found the courage to ask.

"That's a story that can be explained at the briefing," she answered before checking her crono, "which we need to get moving to. Are you ok?"

"Yes. Can't say the same for some of the men." he answered crisply.

Taking the hint, General Veers leaned around the side of the plasma borer and motioned the medics forward.


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey everyone. Well, I have the next chapter. This one is a bit slower, but I felt that the main conversation in here needed to happen. Anyway, next chapter should have a lot more action and we finally get to wrap things up with the weapons. (Sheesh that arc was getting long).**

 **Also, since I believe this is an explanation I owe everyone, I will answer MAC's review on here.**

 **He said, "** **Did they just steal info from the most defended place in UNSC space? if so you better explain how they managed to do that with hundreds of AI to stop them because if I remember correctly star wars universe has nothing compared to HALO AI."**

 **In answer, yes. They stole info, but they didn't steal info from military computers. They pulled all their info off civilian systems, which would be less guarded. Plus when you read, you'll find that they still didn't get a lot.**

 **So, with that question answered, please read, enjoy, and please remember to review. Anyway, without further ado, I give you Chapter 11.**

* * *

Kanan followed toward the back of the group as Rex, Ezra, and the rest of the Ghost crew made their way to the Command Center. While the walk from the hangar wasn't technically long-even with the detours- the halls were chaos as men and women went sprinting down the halls, almost alway guiding a hover stretcher. The scene was disturbingly familiar for Kanan.

"Clear a hole!" boomed a voice in front of them.

Their Marine guide was nearly ran over by a couple stormtroopers as they went sprinting past with a hover-stretcher between them. On it was a Marine bleeding at least a half dozen major lacerations and burns. What caught Kanan's attention was the neck brace and the gauze sticking out of each ear. He promptly decided that he didn't want to know.

"Looks like things turned quite ugly," Kanan commented solemnly.

"It didn't turn too bad until someone decided to overload the power grid. Caved in half the base and swallowed up a lot of good men," the Marine answered bitterly, "Rumor has it, they found the sorry bastard responsible fried to a crisp in the control room of one of the relay stations."

Ezra was about to ask something only to be wordlessly stopped by Rex and Kanan both. This was not the time, and this was not the person. After what felt like forever they managed to enter the surprisingly untouched command center.

What they saw caused everyone to freeze at the door. None of them were fazed by the Elite, two Admirals, or Leia standing on their own sides of the room. It was the black robed figure with glowing yellow eyes. Without really thinking, everyone's hands drifted to their weapons as the crew stared at the Sith Lord in tense silence. The only thing that had kept them from shooting was the Alliance's warning ahead of time.

"General Skywalker," Rex stated as he shook his head, much like a father disappointed in their son, "I always hoped that I was wrong on what happened that night."

"I'm no one's General," Vader replied coldly.

The group fell into another bout of tense silence. It was only punctuated by Piett talking quietly into his comm link. Finally, after a few minutes, the silence was broken as Ahsoka walked through the door with Luke and Appo right behind her. If the tension was thick before, it was suffocating now. Both Appo and Rex briefly locked eyes before quickly retreating to opposite sides of the room and exchanging looks.

"You're more resourceful than I thought," Vader noted.

Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders as she replied, "I don't die easily."

Vader nodded his head in either approval or agreement. No one was sure which.

"No, and I hope none of you have lost your skill. This galaxy has promptly gone to hell," Vader answered as he locked eyes with Kanan, Ezra, Ahsoka, and Luke.

"Yes. Now that everyone is here. Piett, I believe you wanted to start," Leia cut in.

"Yes. For the benefit of our newcomers I will explain what exactly is going on," Admiral Piett started.

With that, he explained what had transpired from the point they left from Kuat Drive Yards. Everyone listened in silence a he spoke with minimal input from everyone else present.

"So, let me get this straight. You decided that it would be fun to start a civil war over some unspecified grudge," Kanan finally asked skeptically.

"I tend to have problems with people who hurt my family and turn me into their glorified slave," Vader answered glacially, "and coming from someone who fought in the Clone Wars, there is nothing 'fun' in war. You of all people would understand that."

"Oh, we understand it clearly," added Ahsoka.

At this Vader allowed a thin smile, "I have no doubt that you, Kanan, Garazeb, and Rex understand it, but Ezra, Hera, and Sabine are… different."

Both Hera and Sabine went to protest but were stopped as Vader raised his hand for silence.

"You know Guerilla Warfare. You understand battles. You don't understand a protracted war. If anyone here understands protracted warfare, it would be the Arbiter in the shiny armor," Vader stated, countering their silent protest.

"What do you know?" Hera asked the Arbiter.

While the question would've sounded accusatory from anyone else, she managed to make it sound like simple curiosity.

The Arbiter didn't skip a beat as he replied, "I lead a fleet of over a hundred ships on an over thirty year campaign to wipe out the human race."

"It was largely successful," Admiral Hood cut in.

"Then after finding out that everything that I believed and was taught had been a lie, I spent the next three years leading the fight in a bloody civil war to protect the same people I had tried to kil."

This caused everyone to fall silent as they contemplated that.

"Alright, so what's the plan," Ahsoka finally asked, deciding that all other questions would need to wait.

"Short term is to try to shut Mother Talzin up," Vader replied, "Long term will depend on Piett."

"That witch is still alive?" Ahsoka asked in astonishment.

"Yes, and the 'Good General's' failure is one that has hung over this base for a while," Vader replied bitterly.

"So what's Admiral Piett's update?" Kanan asked as he tried to keep the conversation moving.

Taking his cue, Piett stepped forward and tapped something into the holotable that dominated the space. The reward was a large fighter with a plus shaped set of wings on the back.

"This is the Skipray Assault Craft- owned by few, but loved by everyone. She's fully decked out with the strongest shield generator ever put to a fighter, up to five inch thick combat grade durasteel armor, and a hyperdrive that would make some frigate skippers envious.

A few hours ago several of these attacked three UNSC planets and two Covenant planets. They attempted to pull an info dump and practically raised the cities they attacked using the space version of a mugging. They jumped right in the middle of the defensive fleets and shot straight for the surface before fighters could be scrambled," Admiral Piett explained.

He paused for any questions.

"What did they get?" Leia asked.

"Between the planets, they got the equivalent of a full, civilian map of the Galaxy and a number of holos of ancient artwork," Admiral Piett replied.

"Not much," Sabine commented.

The Arbiter's face twisted into the Elite equivalent of a frown.

"Art is an odd choice," he noted.

"No it's not," Vader and Piett replied at almost the same time.

Admiral Piett quickly fell silent as Vader explained, "The Commander's name is Grand Admiral Thrawn. He's one of the Emperor's twelve Grand Admirals. They are military commanders chosen for their military prowess and and loyalty to the Emperor. They are the people who oversee the Navy in his name. His promotion is all the more notable because he is- to date- the only nonhuman to rise past the rank of Captain and the only nonhuman to have their career positively influenced by Palpatine."

"So why the art?" the Arbiter pressed.

"A lot of his battle plans revolve around understanding how his adversary thinks and feels. He sees it as a challenge to try to understand how his enemy thinks. In the case of our battle in orbit, he knew I would have a heavy influence on the battle plans. However, he also probably figured that the different factions would also influence it- more than likely causing some sort of multi pronged attack. Couple that with the bridge leak and he had all he needed to meet that attack," Vader answered.

"He studies his enemies almost religiously, and he knows how to do it on the fly," Admiral Piett summarized.

"Here's Admiral Thrawn's military file. You'll find some good reading in it," Vader stated as he handed Admiral Hood a data card.

"I- well- we don't believe there is an invasion in the works," Ahsoka stated.

"Why?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

"As of nine days ago, there was about ninety-seven warships in the Kuat Drive Yards. From what we could find, they were getting some kind of quick refit and then were jumping southeast. We traced them back to Lothal. From there they made a jump at O-two-Nine," Hera answered.

"Their moving away away from the entrance point," Vader summarized as he pulled up a map of the Galaxy, "Interesting. Their moving for the Maw."

"There's nothing in there… Is there?" Leia asked.

"There is, but nothing to warrant ninety-seven warships running full burn to it," Vader answered, "In fact the Emperor has been going out of his way to keep it quiet."

"What is it?" Leia quizzed.

"It's a research center and base. Mostly experimental stuff. They test space tech there. That's where they developed the zero-g suits for the stormtroopers," Vader replied, "The only other thing that is there is Kessel, but they would just as soon abandon that as do anything else with it. It's nothing more than a maximum security labor colony."

"So why there?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

There was a pause as everyone mulled over the question.

"It's a trap," Hera answered, "Think about it. We move on Coruscant, we have to move down this lane here or this one here" -she singled out two separate lines running toward the core- "and by sitting at Kentara Station, he's in an area where he can respond to either one at a time of his choosing. I know this closer one has at least one course correction."

"And the presence of course corrections wouldn't matter with a few Interdictors," Kanan added.

"So we spring the trap," The Arbiter pressed.

"No. We would need to draw them out," Admiral Piett countered as he pulled up a zoomed in image of the maw, "Those are all black holes. We would need at least five hours in sublight to get to the base-"

Admiral Piett stopped as all four force sensitives stiffened. Everyone of them, even Vader, had a look of concern on their faces.

"Is something wrong, Sir?" Admiral Piett asked.

"Yes," Vader replied firmly.

"Very wrong," Ahsoka confirmed.

 **(Coruscant defense grid: High orbit: 1.5 hours earlier)**

The Stalker just sat there, threatening to break apart with the slightest breeze. The sleek grey hull was scorched and torn apart from where the lasers had ripped through. Whole chunks of her port side were nothing but twisted and melted slag or blown away completely. Her shields were gone, her hyperdrive wouldn't survive another jump and the alarms that warned of impending structural failure were resonating from at least twelve different places inside the ship. Not ten minutes ago, the TIE fighters that had done a flyby of the crippled ship reported seeing some sort of green haze leaking through several of the hull breaches and- despite no answer from inside- the Interdictor-Class Warship moving to grab the ship, reported picking up well above average life readings.

The ship stopped it's lopsided drifting as the Interdictor's gravity wells latched on with their iron grip. Then with only a silence capable in the vacuum of space, the ship's slowly moved for a quarantine station while a half dozen Imperial and Victory-Class ships made sure that civilian traffic was kept well away from the disturbing scene. Within ten minutes of being grabbed, the Stalker came to a stop as six arms extended and wrapped the ship in their embrace. Due to the nature of the station, the ship was still within the vacuum of space and as such, a long tunnel, air lock attached to one of the ship's secondary hangers.

* * *

Commander Rensara watched as the last of his men took positions outside the hangar door. Each one had a special filter pack on their back that fed into their life support gear via two hoses into the stormtroopers' helmets.

"This is entry team, green light," he stated as he raised his blaster.

"Copy that," squelched a reply.

With a slowness that was just enough to be agonizing, the door hissed open as the pressure equaled out.

"By the Force, what happened?" Commander Rensara mumbled as his men poured into the hanger.

Instead of the sleek grey interior they were expecting, they were greeted with some sort of green organic mass that covered every surface. The ships that once sat in the space were now all gone or destroyed. Suddenly a slithering noise echoed through the cavernous space. Everyone snapped their attention that way as they spread out. Then the other way as the location of the sound changed.

"Break off and secure the ship. Anything or anyone none Imperial is hostel," he ordered as he motioned his company forward.

With crispness hiding their uncertainty, the officers acknowledged and lead their men forward. They were about to exit the hangar when a series of loud crashes echoed through the room. Out of the vents, out of the doors, and out of the control room viewports poured little green beings with a round body and tentacles for legs. The room instantly lit up with blaster fire as the stormtroopers poured fire into the little green monsters. Almost instantly there were cries of pain and horror as the little beings latched themselves onto several of the unfortunate troopers.

"All teams pull back. Tighten up around the entry," Rensara barked before switching channels, "Control-"

"Incendiary teams are inbound. ETA is ninety seconds," reported a voice over his comm. Due to the nature of the mission, the Interdictor that had dropped off the ship, also had dropped off several troopers of it's own.

Rensara shot a near constant stream of lasers at the attackers. However, they soon weren't his only worry as several larger, green humanoids came rushing out, firing blasters at them. Luckily their aim was bad, but Rensara knew that in this space, it was only a matter of time before they got lucky one too many times. As he switched out power cells, he hazarded a look around.

"Second squad, tighten up. You're about to be cut off," he ordered as he began firing again. All around him, the little beings slithered their way to the troopers before chewing through their armor and latching to their new hosts. After what felt like an eternity, Several troopers in special gear burst in from behind the stormtroopers. Then with almost no warning, large jets of fire engulfed everything in front of the Imperials as they pushed forward. Behind the newcomers, what was left Commander Rensara's men killed anything that dared moved. Slowly but surely the hanger was cleared as more troopers came in to fill the gaps in Rensara's unit.

* * *

As Commander Rensara's men attempted to clear the Stalker, another problem was already brewing. Outside, another crippled warship jumped out of hyperspace. This one, known as the ISD Firestorm, was another Imperial-Class Warship. However, it jumped just outside the grid and attempted a run straight for the surface. The nearby defenders gave one warning and then- after a few seconds with no response- opened fire on the ship. The badly damaged ship leaned hard to the starboard side as it's stabilizer gave out. Soon after, entire pieces of the ship were breaking off in a fiery blaze. As this happened, the sensor operators failed to see multiple escape pods firing out of the ship. The starboard ones shot, unhindered, for the surface, while the portside ones were picked up, either by nearby warships or destroyed by fighters. The night sky was lit up as chunks of the ship burned up in the atmosphere. However, little did they know that the danger laid in what they didn't see.

 **(ISD Conviction: Kuat Drive Yards)**

Admiral Thrawn found himself fascinated by the art he was studying. While they had been forced to forgo a military info dump in favor of a partial dump on civilian systems, the results weren't all that disappointing. He certainly wouldn't be planning an invasion off the info, but it did have what he really wanted- art, a deep look into the psyche of his enemies. These were definitely unique people and a people worthy of his attention. He was interrupted in his musings as the door to his stateroom hissed open. He listened as the sound of boots thumping on the floor came to a hesitant stop behind him.

"Yes Captain," he acknowledged as he motioned the man forward.

"I- uh… The refit is complete. As previously noted, we will have no tractor beam in the lower hanger, but she'll gut anything the Alliance has," the man reported as he attempted to make eye contact with the Admiral.

"Yes, and strip the shields off of about anything else. Don't forget, I got to listen their overconfident speech," Admiral Thrawn reminded the Captain.

"Overconfident, sir?" asked the young Captain in confusion.

"Yes, considering that not two hours earlier they weren't sure that it was even possible," Admiral Thrawn confirmed before noting the data pad in the Captain's hand, "Tell me, what is this?"

"Ah, yes. A message from Command. I was told to deliver this to you," the man replied as he held out the pad.

Thrawn paused for a minute as he read the dispatch. Slowly his eyebrows rose. He knew exactly what ships were being mentioned. However, to be sure, he powered up his own personal computer station and did a search.

"Just as I thought," he mumbled as he read who they were assigned to.

"Is there as problem, sir?" asked the Captain.

"I hope not. Tell command to keep me updated on the situation developing in the core," he ordered firmly, "I pray that the Empire has not made a grave error."

The Captain paused, obviously put off by the Admiral's words. However, he chose to keep his questions to himself.

"Captain," Thrawn added, "I know what I said. Your duty is to the Empire, and more specifically, it is to this crew. We've seen worse. Keep your head here and now, and there's nothing you can't overcome… Clear?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, what's the status of our situation?" Thrawn asked in his usual calm but crisp manner.

"We're moving as planned. The last of the ships, including the Conviction, are ready to move on your command. Our forces in the Maw are holding steady. The mobile teams have finished their work. Everyone except the Executors are outfitted. The Rebels are holding at Dathomir. Word from our source is that a local by the name of Mother Talzin is causing issues," he reported.

"Good. Do they suspect him?" Thrawn asked.

"Yes sir. After the data dumps, it would be almost impossible not to," the Captain reported.

Thrawn fell silent as he rose out of his chair and walked toward the door to his room. It wasn't until they were out and moving for the bridge, that he answered.

"Order him to Code 3. It is unfortunate, but if he is caught he shouldn't have to suffer through one of Vader's questioning sessions," Thrawn finally ordered.

"But, sir, the Sleeper Agents aren't suppose to have any damaging info," the Captain countered.

Thrawn came to a sudden stop outside the bridge blast doors as he drew himself to his full height. This caused the Captain to stumble as he came to a stop also. He gulped as Thrawn's face drew into a very obvious frown and the Admiral's red eyes bored into him.

"Captain. To you Vader is a myth- a legend- a horror story that Commanding officers tell their subordinates to get them to obey orders. 'Obey or answer to Vader for our failure.' However, to me he is real. I have listened to the hissing of his suit and watched as he squeezed info out of enemies in ways that would make Imperial Intelligence wince. I watched as he literally pried info from a man's brain without a word being said. I respect him from one military mind to another. However, I am under no illusion as to how dangerous of an enemy he is. If this agent ever saw or heard anything, even by accident or without realizing it, Vader will know, and the Agent will suffer a fate worse than death," Thrawn countered firmly.

"Yes sir," the Captain replied with a gulp.

It was at that point that Thrawn seriously wondered whom the Captain feared more. Not that it mattered, he had gotten the point.

"Good," Thrawn acknowledged as he walked onto the bridge.

With that the Captain went to work ensuring that the ship was ready to go. Thrawn simply took a seat in his command chair and observed the scene unfolding before him. Finally after five minutes the Captain turned back to him.

"All ships have called in, and the Conviction is ready to go," he reported.

"Good… At your command, Captain," Admiral Thrawn responded in the traditional manner.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey everyone. It's finished. Mother Talzin's arc is done in what I would like to think is my best chapter so far. However, that is for you to decide.**

 **As everyone probably noticed, the flood has entered the stage. No I did not forget when writing this chapter. We'll check back in with them next time. There was just something else that needed to happen this chapter, instead.**

 **Finally I have a question. I am undecided on how to end this story so I am going to pose a couple questions. A) Who of the Jedi here do you want to live (if any, I am not above major character deaths)? B) Do you think I should have the Empire get absorbed into the New Republic or should it remain a separate nation like it did in the old cannon? I have two competing ideas and am trying to decide which one to go with so please let me know.**

 **So without further ado, I give you chapter 12.**

* * *

Vader stood up as the shuttle touched down. Then with an agonizing slowness, the ramp lowered. Vader summoned up every ounce of his commanding presence as he channeled his pain, hate, and anger into the force and extended his awareness. With a dignity and authority that only a Sith could muster, he walked down the ramp with precise and measured strides. As soon as his feet hit the dirt, he pressed a button on his wrist. In response, the ramp to the shuttle hissed up and the engine whine turned into a roar as the shuttle took off for the Executor. This left him alone in the densely wooded valley. The only signs of life were old, destroyed, and overgrown tanks and droids that were almost synonymous with the long dead CIS.

"I'm here Talzin. Come talk," he stated in a commanding, but normal volume.

He used his voice to broadcast his presence even louder through the force than he already was. Drawing on the force like he was would make him a bright, shining- albeit black- spot in the force, and he was counting on it.

Finally, after a few minutes, he could feel her reach through the force as green, vapor-like tentacles attempted to snake around him. His own senses had warned him well before they had a chance. With a powerful force blast, he tore them away as he slammed his mental shields up. He had learned the hard way that fighting her was about seventy-five percent keeping her out of his head.

"You've grown in power," her condescending voice echoed through the trees.

"Have I?" he asked as he raised a eyebrow.

He knew the truth. He knew the suit had been holding him back, but it would be a good way to keep her focused on him.

"Come now, you and I both know it to be true," she answered.

This time her voice came from a very distinct direction as a large green ball of mist filtered through the trees behind and to the left of Vader. Because he was tracking her in the force, he didn't even bother to look in her direction. As a mist, she couldn't do any physical harm. However, something else caught his attention. There was a net being cast- not physically but in the force. It was like balls of yarn were being thrown across the sky in a criss-cross pattern and this one was quite large.

"That's a large net you have going for one person," Vader commented casually as he hid his worry behind his well build shields.

"Who says it's just for you?" she purred.

Then, with little warning, she shot past him and materialized a few feet away. A calculating grin was painted on her face.

"Your Nightsisters are loyal, but they aren't suicidal," Vader countered as he clasped his hands in front of him.

As he grabbed his right wrist with his left hand, he applied a little extra pressure with his ring finger.

"They don't have a choice in this matter," Talzin replied menacingly.

Despite her tone, Vader could sense the lie.

"No, but I stand by my earlier statement," he replied as he brought his hand to his lightsaber.

Then with one fluid motion, he grabbed it off his belt and snapped the red blade to life before letting the blade drop, almost lazily, to his size.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall," he retorted.

"Now that pleasantries have been exchanged, let's have that conversation that you so wished to have," he stated in a cold, menacing tone of his own.

* * *

Back at the Command Center, Rex watched the operation unfold through several different monitors and sensors. The Elites were in the middle of doing a textbook sweep and clear of the villages and other areas of suspicion that they could quietly get to. Well, it was as textbook as it could be when they were using cloaking devices and trying not to get seen.

"So, you're former military, right?" asked Commander Palmer from behind him.

"Not so sure about "former" but yes I am, Commander," Rex replied as he studied the screen.

On it, he got the view off the Elite's left shoulder. Up on the hillside, a figure in tan, close fitting gear waved them forward.

"I highly doubt that beard is regulation," chided the Commander.

Rex didn't immediately respond as the Elites descended toward the wreckage. There was two AT AT's. Each had been knocked over. However, the severe damage to the neck and nature in which they fell suggested that it was a rapid violent attack. To confirm this fact, There was the twisted remains of two AT STs and multiple bodies scattered around.

"No it isn't," Rex finally answered absently before turning more focused, "This was an ambush if I've ever seen one."

"Yes, but how?" Commander Palmer quizzed, "There's no real blast marks. There's scorching but most of it is…"- They got a good view of one of the AT STs- "Claw marks?"

"Rancors," Rex replied in disbelief, "I think I understand why Vader wanted all that heavy equipment up now."

"That's not-"

"Commander, we just got a red light from Vader," called an operator.

"Understood. Pass it along," she ordered before turning to Rex, "You know them better than me, did the convoy run into bad luck or can this be coordinated?"

"All I know is what I've read. Rancor's on their own are big, and ugly with the intelligence- or lack thereof- that usually comes with it. However, there are rumors of the Nightsisters being able to coordinate attacks. Unfortunately, there's a definite lack of reliable eyewitness accounts," Rex stated.

* * *

Vader tore through the forest as fast as his body could take him- elegance and grace be damned. His target was a few hundred yards out and closing fast. He could hear the breaking of trees behind him as the Rancor gave chase. With the pain and still getting use to having real legs again, Vader knew that there was no out running it. However, he didn't want to. He wanted to force a one on one fight with Talzin, and so he would do it. Up ahead was a building complex carved neatly into the rock face. As he hit the edge of the clearing, Vader leapt up off his last step. Using the force to guide him, Vader latched onto a branch. Under protest from his new limbs, he half pulled and half swung himself up. The Rancor had enough time to see what had happened but not enough to avoid overshooting into the clearing. Not waiting for the real pain to set in, Vader launched himself at the Rancor's back with his lightsaber ignited.

However, luck did not seem to be with Vader as the big lumbering creature swung around with it's claws slicing through the air. His eyes widened as he adjusted his blade at the last second. Despite the blade stabbing clear through the hand, the force of the collision was enough to throw Vader to the ground. The impact hurt but years of experience and quick reacting kept it from being a crippling or lethal. Immediately the Rancor was at him, swinging its giant, clawed arms around like clubs and blinded by rage.

As Vader rushed around, he began to reach through the force. He immediately felt Talzin's personal control over the animal's mind. However, feeling it and breaking it were two different things. Without really thinking, Vader fell back into the trees. Soon he was bouncing from limb to limb as he attempted to force his way into the Rancor's mind. Finally, he was able to put enough distance between himself and the beast that he could really focus.

"You will let go," he commanded as he stretched out his arm.

" _No!"_ Talzin's voice echoed a voice in his head.

"I said, "You will let go,'" he commanded again as he poured more of the force into his words.

" _I… I will not!"_ She echoed definitely as she poured the force into her own words.

However, Vader could feel slight uncertainty as her hold wavered. The physical response was even more telling as the Rancor stumbled before spending the next few seconds trying to claw out the voices in its head. Fed up with the game, Vader drew in every ounce of the darkside that he could.

"Let go! Do it… Now!" he ordered as he poured all he could into the force.

An earsplitting scream flooded the air and pounded his head. Vader forced himself to stand firm as the Rancor's cry added to the noise. The Rancor, having been completely disorientated by the competing voices stumbled before crashing to the ground- it's mind totally destroyed by the duel in it's head.

As the Rancor hit the ground, Vader's senses cried out. He snapped his lightsaber back to life just in time to catch the green mist of a force attack. Using the force to help, he deflected it to the side. Due to how Talzin used the force, her uses of it came in the form of a green mist as opposed to being invisible. As it flew away, Talzin materialized a few feet away with the next attack waiting. However, there was a difference in her. She looked older, more tired, and very focused as opposed to the arrogant, relaxed tone she had earlier.

* * *

"This is Gold Leader, we are on final approach- point 51, northeast. Watch your heads down there," Crackled a voice through General Veer's comm.

"Copy that," he responded as he pulled down the commander's scope in his Juggernaut.

Around him, the base was under siege. A few minutes earlier, Hundreds of Rancors, supported by just as many- if not more- nightsisters, had began a full scale attack on the base. Up ahead, Several Rancors were rushing at them. Right behind, he could see the partial outline of several nightsisters as they broke the tree line.

 _Smart… but not that smart,_ he thought with a smug grin.

"Up four degrees and fire five- seven hundred meters straight on," he ordered.

"Yes sir," replied the fire control officer.

There was several muffled thumps as five concussion missiles streaked through the air. Neither the Rancors or the Nightsisters had time for their brains to register the missiles flying at them, let alone run before they were blown into scorching, charred pieces. Five seconds later he heard the distinct sound of Y-Wing bombers. Ten seconds after that the world shook as bombers flew by, leaving behind a trail of fiery explosions. This alone completely collapsed the latest attack. Most of the attackers were incinerated or blown up beyond recognition.

As it became clear that the attack was over, General Veers gave his next order.

"All teams move up. Let's put an end to this," he ordered.

* * *

Appo heard and acknowledged the reply before turning to the men behind him.

"Let's move up. Work with the tanks and watch your spacing," he ordered, "No prisoners on this one. We don't have the space."

Not waiting for a response, he lead his men out of the bunker complex they had been in. All around him, Marines, Alliance troops, and Stormtroopers all started to appear. They were under the guard of AT ATs, Scorpions, and a handful of AT STs. However, the vehicles that dominated the view were the three Juggernaut tanks and the UNSC Mammoth. By habit, Appo and his men fell in just a little behind the lead tanks and in front of everyone else as they fanned out. Every once and awhile, he would hear the tell tail screech of a blaster shot. The truth was that they might have room for a couple prisoners, but he hadn't been given any specific orders and he really wasn't in the mood.

As they entered the trees, a purple streak flashed through his peripheral vision, followed by a yell of pain. Appo whipped his blaster over toward the direction of the shot. However, the dense vegetation and inter tangled tree limbs made it hard to see. before he could find the shooter, a sniper rifle barked out. The offending Nightsister went tumbling off the tree with a neat hole in her head.

"Nora's dead," reported one of his men, "The arrow hit between the helmet and chestplate.

Appo simply nodded his head, before activating his comm.

"Whomever took that shot gets a drink on me," he "declared.

"Thanks, I'll hold you to it," Linda replied.

Appo didn't bother to respond, but simply kept moving with extra attention paid to the trees. For the longest time, there was nothing but the rumble of engines and the crunching of boot steps.

"All stop. recon's got a lot of natives ahead," General Veers ordered.

Up in front of the tanks, several teams of Spec Op Elites were scouting ahead. Unfortunately, the terrain was making it difficult to spot ambushes.

* * *

General Veers listened and pressed buttons on a control panel as the Elite Commander fed him the relevant target info.

"Confirmed. Pull back. It's about to get really loud," he ordered.

As he was waiting, he passed the info to the other three Juggernauts and UNSC Mammoth.

"All teams be advised. We have the package. I repeat, package is secure in orbit," Admiral Ackbar's voice announced through the comm.

General Veers let out a small, measured sigh of relief at the news. The bombs were now out of the equation. As General Veers acknowledged, he got an idea.

"This Echo 1 to Echos 2 and 3. Switch over to defoliator missiles," he ordered.

Inside, he could hear the muffled whine of the auto loaders as the fire control officer switched ammunition.

"This is Mammoth. We have a solution and are standing by," announced a young, crisp voice.

Underneath the military discipline, the General could hear impatience. He smirked as he mentally translated the message. _What the hell is taking so long? We could've been done by now._

 _Oh to be so young and full of yourself_ , he thought with a thin smile before answering, "Hold your fire. There's no use wasting the ammunition."

"Copy that," responded the UNSC officer.

This time, though, the man hadn't worked nearly as hard to hide his annoyance. While General Veers would've usually been annoyed, it instead elicited a quiet chuckle. The significance of his order to change ammo had clearly gone over the man's head.

As he shook his head, General Veers gave the order to fire. Within the space of twenty seconds, over thirty separate, blue streaks passed through the General's field of view. Within seconds of that, the whole ground shook as whole chunks of the forest instantly ceased to exist. As the last blast started to fade away, he ordered everyone to advance. With the exception of a couple hidden nightsisters, there was no resistance, and they soon rolled into the massive clearing of ash where the rockets had hit.

"So that's why I got to just watch," the UNSC officer commented over the comm.

"You know, it might shock you learn that I actually earned my stripes," General Veers replied sharply.

There was a moment of silence over the comm, before the man replied crisply, "Yes General."

General Veers didn't bother to respond as he surveyed the carnage. It was clear they had won this round, and by extension he hoped they ended the war.

* * *

Obi Wan watched with worry as Luke sprinted through the forest. Vader was in trouble and he had sensed it.

"Luke don't. She's much too powerful," he warned.

Due to the nature of her connection to the force, Mother Talzin was more than a match for any Jedi Master, let alone a kid that wasn't much more than a padawan learner- a strong padawan, but a padawan nonetheless.

"I have to help him. I- we need him," Luke argued as he ducked under a low hanging branch.

The slip of the tongue was quite the telling mistake but it was something to address at a later time when Luke wasn't on a self-imposed suicide mission. It didn't help Obi Wan's worry that Luke had dismissed the squad of Spec Ops Elites so they could join the battle.

Obi Wan sighed and tried a different approach, "This isn't Bespin. There is no ulterior motive, or other reason to keep you alive. She will kill you."

"That's why you don't fight fairly," Luke replied with an uneasy amount of venom.

Concerned by his tone, Obi Wan probed his force aurora and saw his fears coming to light. The long term exposure to the darkside on this planet was starting to affect Luke for the worse.

"Be careful Luke, this is a dangerous line you're walking," he warned.

"I'll worry about that when I'm trying not to get killed," Luke mumbled as he climbed his way up into the trees.

Knowing there was nothing else he could say, Obi Wan shook his head.

 _Like Father, like son,_ he thought.

"Like Sith," echoed a voice in Obi Wan's mind.

With surprise and anger at his mistake, Obi Wan realized the real reason Vader had pushed for Dathomir. He was putting Luke through the same trials that he put his Inquisitors through and everyone had played right into his hand.

* * *

Vader swung his lightsaber up just in time to absorb one of Mother Talzin's attacks. It was very similar to the force lightning that Sith loved so much. However, it was much more concentrated and by default, much more deadly. Three arcs collided with his his blade in a brilliant display of light while Vader was forced to use the force to channel it into his cyborg hand and trusting that he could dissipate the energy. He did, but with great pain and the cost of that hand as the internal components sparked and melted in their own display of light and smoke.

Gritting his teeth, Vader forced himself to work through his exhaustion and draw on the pain and hate to keep his strength up. After an hour and a half of combat he was exhausted, beaten, and bloody from the force intensive fight. Talzin was a very different caliber of enemy than any other Jedi- fallen or not.

"But she'll die all the same," he mumbled to himself as Talzin finished her strike.

Not waiting for a follow up attack, Vader channelled every ounce of his strength and the force into his left hand. The response was instant as a lighting filled force blast slammed into Talzin. She raised her own shield of green force energy just in time to keep it from being fatal, but the sheer force of the attack sent her reeling back as she struggled to keep her shield up. Seeing this, Vader continued to pour into the force attack as he slowly advanced. The fight was ending. He could sense it. The only question was who would be left standing when it was all over. Inch by inch he stepped forward as his strength slowly drained into the attack. He plunged everything he had into it. He poured his strength, his anger, his hate, his passion, and his fear. Then when he saw that it wasn't enough, Vader looked for anything in the force that he could use. He looked desperately for what he could use and before he knew it, he was adding his old- almost dead- skills as a Jedi. At this moment the distinction between "Anakin" and "Vader" was blurring in his head, and Vader wasn't very sure that he cared. With one last push he lashed out with the force and his body broke.

* * *

The sheer amount of raw power flooding the force was enough to cause Luke to tremble slightly. However, he shook it off of as he climbed into position.

"Just so we're clear, I can kill her as long as she's in her physical form, right?" Luke clarified.

"Yes," echoed Obi Wan's worried voice.

Luke simply nodded as he got into position and peered through the scope of his rifle. Talzin's back was to him and he had a clear shot. As he lined up the shot, he watched as Vader stumbled forward before collapsing onto his hands and knees- his body physically unable to continue on. As Vader struggled to regain his footing in what was nothing more than an final act of defiance, Luke centered the red dot of the scope on the back of Talzin's head. For reason's Luke would never fully understand, he felt an anger- if he was honest- hate. This was not how men like his father were suppose to die- broken, weak, and not beyond redemption.

With a loud screech, the rifle bucked and Talzin's body stiffened reflexively with a neat cauterized hole in the back of the head. Then with a grace all unto her own, Talzin's body fell to the ground as Luke felt her life fade away in the force. The next ninety seconds were a blur as Luke slung the rifle on his back, dropped out of the tree, and rushed to ensure Vader's safety. As he got closer, it was clear Vader was not going to make the hike back to base. He had just finally gotten himself up and seemed to be standing by force of will alone. He was bloody, bruised, sweaty, and barely conscious. However, what was most telling was when Vader didn't object to Luke half helping and half forcing him to sit down, or when he called for a medical evac.

* * *

Despite hardly being able to stand, Vader look on with smug satisfaction at Talzin's lifeless body. It was ironic that she had spent all this time in a duel of the force with him, only to get assassinated by a kid who didn't even pass as a Knight. As much as he didn't want to, he wasn't in a position to argue when Luke insisted on sitting down. However, as he went to sit, his feet slid from under him, and Vader suddenly found himself staring up at the sky. As the Vader registered the sound of a Lambda-Class shuttle on approach, he attempted to put himself into a healing meditation, but it quickly gave way to unconsciousness.

 **(Byss System: Imperial Palace)**

Sidious was in his inner most sanctum studying an old Sith Holocron when he felt it. He felt the ripple in the force. It was loud and clear. No force user could've missed it. The Light and Dark had merged, but it was not the usual diluted mix that usually happened with some former Jedi or Sith. No this was sharp, strong, and very deliberate. What he found most troubling, though, was that it was concentrated in one man.

"Vader," he spat.

The betrayal had not been a surprise, in fact Sidious had seen it coming for years. This was why he had put men like Tarkin over him. This is why he had deliberately played a hand in picking Death Squadron's commanding officers over the years. His suspicions had always been confirmed by Vader's a silent contention in the area. However, what had angered Sidious more than usual was when Vader chose to brake thousands of years of tradition and hide behind a foreign fleet, instead of attempting to fight or assassinate Sidious person to person. This was the mark of a coward and a weakling, not a worthy Sith successor.

Oh well, however Vader had done it, Sidious could sense that it had left him severely hurt and drained- both physically and in the Force. This left a unique opportunity. As he reached into the force, he had to admire the situation. The way he had saved Vader, he would kill him. The way he had killed Padme- and by extension Vader's last tie to the light- he would kill her husband.

 _It appears that some things run in the family,_ he thought with a sinister chuckle.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey, everyone. Well, here it is. I have the chapter, as I promised, we are turning the focus back on the flood. One warning I will give. Vader states somethings that may not line up with cannon, in one of his conversations. Take what he says with a grain of salt. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys, and please remember to review. I love hearing what everyone thinks.**

 **Anyways, without further ado, I give you Chapter 13.**

* * *

 **(ISD EXECUTOR: Docking bay 1)**

Vader woke up just in time to hear the shuttle touch down. However, that never registered as he fought to remember where he was at. He immediately bristled as he felt the restraints around him. He jerked against them reflexively, trying to get loose.

"Easy," Luke soothed, "You're on an Imperial shuttle."

"Your vitals took a sharp turn for the worse, My Lord. We diverted to the Executor where there was better medical equipment," added a medic.

As the ramp hissed open, everything came back in a rush. Vader went to speak, but much to his dismay, all that came out was a halfhearted croak. After taking a drink from an offered bottle of water, he tried again.

"Where's-" he winced as he felt a shock of pain in his chest- "the Admiral?" he asked in a raspy voice.

"Right here," Luke replied as they rounded a corner.

A few hushed words were spoken between Piett and Luke before he stepped forward.

"It's time" Vader gasped as blackness nipped at the edge of his vision, "De-Deal with our rat."

"Yes sir," the Admiral replied eagerly.

With that Vader slipped back out of consciousness. Admiral Piett turned to leave, but paused as the medic checked his datapad and swore.

"What's going on?" he demanded.

"His vitals are dropping again," the medic replied as he pushed the hover-stretcher as fast as it would go.

Admiral Piett watched as the medics pushed him toward the medibay, before turning to carry out his orders. There was nothing more he could do, and the last thing Vader would want is for him to waste time hovering over after being given orders. As he rode the turbolift up to the bridge, he checked the charge on his service blaster and mentally drafted his speech. As the doors opened, he drew himself to his full height, and put on a scowl that betrayed his current anger in full force.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please," he commanded.

He paused as he waited for everyone to look at him. He took the time to study every face, and take in every unspoken thought. He knew who the culprit was, but it didn't hurt to double check. His boot gave off a hollow echo as he paced up and down the bridge. Once he saw the last eyes lock on him, he began.

"When you all graduated the Imperial Academy, you swore an oath. You swore to serve and defend this great Empire no matter the cost. You swore your life to the peace and security of this galaxy. This sad burden is that that we know the truth. Each and every person is here because they understand that it is the Emperor himself is posing the greatest threat. Lies and corruption have rotted our galaxy from the inside. Yet the Emperor continues to strip us of our power to do anything about it. Worlds threaten to break away, and all he can think about is how he can limit our capacity to respond… effectively respond. He throws resources into these hopelessly impractical terror weapons and then can't figure out why his galaxy is coming unhinged. He preaches of justice and peace, yet we do not crush crimelords like the Hutts or the Black Sun. We let them extort us for use of their- no, our- hyperspace lanes. We watch hopelessly as the Moffs push and shove for control, effectively abandoning anyone outside the core.

Twelve weeks ago we chose to do something about it. We chose to break away, because nothing was going to change while the emperor sat on the throne. Nothing was going to change while he sat there, drunk on his own power. So we made the choice to do something about it. We chose to make our oath more than just mere words to be recited. We chose to live them"-Admiral Piett paused as he locked eyes with various crewmembers- "Knowing that we would be noticed quickly, we gave those uncomfortable a chance to peacefully leave. The only ones to die were spooks- spies purposely hidden in order to kill us from the inside. Yet it appears we missed one."

Admiral Piett locked eyes with the Lieutenant in charge of the probe and sensor operators. With one fluid motion drew and fired his service blaster. The laser took the man right between his horrified eyes. He never had a chance to cry out before his brain shut down. He was dead before he hit the deck.

"Meet ISB Agent Dawtry," Admiral Piett explained as he held up a photo of the man in an ISB uniform, "He was a deep cover agent that cross trained into the Imperial Navy. He was assigned to Vader's former flagship, the Devastator, before transferring to the Executor when Vader took it as his new ship. He is what caused the trap over Dathomir. He is also responsible for the attack on several UNSC colonies, and if he had been thinking, he could have crumbled this vital- if temporary- alliance. Now, there is little that I ask of you. I simply ask for your trust and I ask you to do your job. We all have one mission and one goal. It is not easy an easy goal, but it is a worthy goal, and we will strive for it as one... We either live together or we die together. Am I clear?"

Stunned by the execution, the crew took a moment to respond. However, slowly but surely, heads started nodding before several people responded with a crisp "Yes sir.".

"Good," he acknowledged before motioning over a couple troopers, "Get that spook off my damn bridge."

 **(Coruscant: Lower "Alien Quarter")**

The stormtroopers went marching down the hallway with riot troopers and incendiary teams up front. Their pristine white armor acted in stark contrast to the musty dim corridor. An unnatural green mist added to the sense of neglect. The "Alien Quarter" was one of Coruscant's poorest sections. Very few people here lived by legitimate means anymore. Those that still lived in the run down levels of the skyscrapers were mostly that spent their time in a self-feeding trap of alcohol, drugs, and lack of suitable income. Most of the people here were non-human families that had come to Coruscant during the last days of the Clone Wars, hoping for a new life. Instead they found themselves trapped by the local crime lords, with no hope of Imperial help. The Imperials that did work here had found that they made better money working with the criminals than they did enforcing the law. The few that didn't, were either dead or had quickly learned to simply keep their mouths shut and their heads down. This was until the Firestorm was destroyed in orbit.

Soon people were going missing by the dozens, and within hours those same people were showing back up as green mutated monsters. Soon the place turned into a warzone as the scale of the problem reached the Imperial forces higher up.

"How close are we?" quizzed Commander Harman.

"Should be seeing them anytime. Life readings are inconclusive, though. I can't quite nail down where their at or how many there are," replied a sergeant.

As they turned down a passage, he noticed several doors torn open. Silently he motioned for people to split off and clear them. With silent precision, several squads started the task.

"Attention all Imperial teams, this is Director Isard. The Defense grid has been compromised. I repeat the Defense Grid has been compromised," announced a cold, feminine voice.

"Was it me or did I hear worry in that voice?" remarked one of the troopers with a shield.

"Damn, I think I actually heard a real emotion. Will the wonders ever cease?" added another trooper sarcastically.

Ysanne Isard was the Director of Imperial Intelligence and known all throughout Coruscant for her ruthlessness, and lack of kindness toward people. Commander Harman took a moment to snicker inside his helmet before steeling his voice.

"Lock it up," he ordered before switching on his comm, "Red team copies, clearing sector four."

As he said that, the lights flickered. This brought everyone back to the present. Within seconds of that, there was another flicker as a slithering noise echoed down the passageway. Commander Harman did not like where this was going and his men were getting a little too spread out for comfort.

"All squads form up on me," he ordered.

There was the sound of rapidly approaching footfalls as the troopers responded.

"This is black team… They've breached the power station!" yelled a voice over his comm, "I repeat, hostels have breached the power- Ack!"

Knowing what had happened, Commander Harman didn't even bother trying to raise the person on the other end. As if on cue, the lights went out. This time it was for good. With a couple blicks, he activated his night vision. The murky green image that he was rewarded with, only added to the foreboding atmosphere. Suddenly, all around him loud crashes could be heard as hoards of little green beings came crashing through the ventilation hatches. The room immediately lit up with lasers and fire as the troopers responded. Out of the doorway ahead, several larger combat forms came sprinting in, firing their blasters. He recognized some of them as having once been Rodians, Tweleks, Bothans, Humans, and all other matter of races. Soon there were cries of horror and pain all around the Commander as his men were overwhelmed.

"Pull back. There's too many," he ordered as he put several bolts through a combat form.

With the flamethrowers leading the way and covering their back, the troopers attempted to retreat. However, the number of forms made that almost as impossible as pressing forward.

 **(Imperial Intelligence Complex: Government Sector)**

Director Isard paced the command room as she monitored the progress of the evacuation. Ten hours ago she and the other agency directors on Coruscant had been given the order to evacuate. At the time, when the situation was just developing, it seemed like a crazy order. Now it was making more and more sense. Right now she almost felt sorry for her friends in the ISB. They got the fun task of dealing with panicked civilians. She just had to get her own people out, and feed them the relevant info.

"Ma'am, orbit line three has been breached," reported an officer.

"We just lost contact with red team," added the man's commanding officer.

"Show me," she ordered as she pulled up a map of Coruscant's underworld.

"Right here," the man stated as he pointed uncomfortably close to the Government district, "If I may, they're just drawing the combat teams in and taking them out. This isn't a conventional enemy."

"So I've noticed Captain. Perhaps you would like to pass that onto the ISB?" she suggested sarcastically, "I'm sure they'd love their methods questioned."

He briefly stiffened before answering, "No ma'am. I'm sure they know what they are doing."

"Good. Just pass the info along, station combat teams at all points, and go into code 3 lockdown," she ordered.

"Yes ma'am," the Captain replied crisply.

Once his back was turned, she took a moment to rub her eyes. This had been a long several hours, and things were going south very fast. They had reports of this "flood" showing up all over the planet, and stopping it was like a cross between trying to stop a ghost and a black hole. It made for a very unique and deadly enemy. It made things hell, because ISB couldn't just evacuate one area. Instead they were being forced to, essentially, evac the whole planet. At the thought, she allowed a calculating smile

 _More power to them. Let the ISB take the fall for Coruscant's loss,_ she thought, _and if the Imperial Military gets caught in the fall out, even better._

She would be happily waiting to pick up the pieces and add them to her growing Intelligence Empire. Now it was the Intelligence world, but some time very soon, it would be the actual empire she kept telling herself. She knew she couldn't kill take power away from the Emperor. Hell, she didn't want too. He was one of the only people she actually respected. However, one day he would die. She knew this for a fact. The man had too many enemies and eventually one of them was going to get lucky, and when they did, she would be there to claim the throne and take control for herself.

 **(ISD Executor: High Orbit over Dathomir)**

"How's he doing?" Admiral Piett demanded as he entered the Medibay, with Ahsoka right behind him.

"Not good. He's dying and we can't figure out why. He's definitely fighting, and is awake off and on, but he's fading fast," the doctor explained.

"I can feel it," Ahsoka added gravely, "What about a bacta tank?"

"I wish, but he's demanded something else. He says it's like a bacta tank but it's in his quarters. Something to do with an induced meditative state. Personally I think he's losing it," answered the medic as he dropped his voice to a whisper, "and he claimed that one of the Jedi would know how it works."

Admiral Piett frowned, but Ahsoka's eyes widened. She knew exactly what he was talking about.

"Has he lost his kriffen mind?!" she demanded, "First where in the hell- Never mind, I really don't want to think on that answer, and second that thing would bring a healthy person stupidly close to death, not to mention someone who is already dying."

"Do it," Vader cut in from the other room, "That's an order!"

"Sir?" quietly pleaded the medic.

Admiral Piett simply shook his head. He didn't like it either, but Vader had the final say.

"You heard Lord Vader, orders are orders," he answered finally.

With a reluctant nod, the doctor went to oversee his movement.

Ahsoka simply stood back and shook her head. She never thought that she would see the day where she needed a Sith to live. Yet, here she was. She was refocused as she heard several doctors raise their voices from the other room.

"Sir, with all due respect, you are in no position to be doing that," argued the lead doctor.

"I insist that you lay down. It's for your good," added a medical droid.

The sound was a loud crash as the droid was smashed to pieces against the wall.

"I can walk to my own quarters. I don't need help," Vader growled as he attempted to stand.

Ahsoka shivered at the spike in the darkside as Vader used the force to keep himself standing.

"Lord Vader, you can barely keep conscious-" Piett tried to add.

"Admiral. I have already vetted the Captain of this ship. Due not think that you are untouchable," Vader interrupted sharply as he shuffled out of the bay.

Even pale and shaking, Vader was an imposing sight, and Ahsoka found herself subconsciously moving out of his way.

"Is he always like this?" she asked quietly as she fell in behind with the Admiral.

"No. Usually I'm stuck sending a couple troopers to collect the droid pieces from his quarters, not the medibay," Piett answered just as quietly, "We rarely have living doctors help him. It's harder to replace them."

It was at that moment that the doctor cleared his throat.

"Miss Tano?" he asked crisply.

"Yes?"

"He said you would know what he's talking about. What exactly is it?" the doctor asked nervously.

Ahsoka thought for a second before answering, "Think of it as a medically induced coma, except only deeper."

"Lovely," the doctor replied dryly.

A little ways behind them, Admiral Piett was updating Admiral Hood.

"This sounds a lot like the old cryotubes we use to have prewar. I think it might be best if Doctor Halsey was present," Admiral Hood stated.

The quickness of the statement sent alarm bells off in Piett's head.

"If you want a spook here, just say it. Don't beat around the bush," Admiral Piett snapped.

Admiral Hood stiffened as he went to counter, "I didn't mean-"

"Like hell. I've spent my life around the Imperial Security Bureau and Imperial Intelligence. You're going to need to do a lot better than that," Admiral Piett interrupted.

Nodding his head in understanding, Admiral Hood responded, "Fine. A spook wouldn't understand as well as her, and I am being serious. This sounds like one of our old cryotubes, something she is quite familiar with. She would know what to look for in his vitals."

"Fine. Send her over, alone," Admiral Piett conceded.

"With a couple escorts," Hood countered.

"My ship, my rules. Alone, or not at all," Admiral Piett commanded, "I have a lot more to lose by hurting her than leaving her be."

"Very well, she's on her way," Admiral Hood reluctantly agreed.

It was at that moment that Vader and the rest of the group made their way into his quarters. The room was solid black with a massive circular chamber dominating the center. There was a large door to the left with another one in the back of the room and this was the one Vader staggered toward. Vader half leaned against and half fell into the wall as he punched the code into the lock panel for the door. As it hissed open, they were greeted with a large liquid filled chamber. Hanging in front was a harness that attached to a small ceiling-mounted crane. Strapped to the harness and running up into the ceiling was an oxygen mask.

"Looks a lot like a bacta setup to me," Ahsoka commented as she tried to ignore the darkside pressing in around her.

"It is. Here's the controls. You'll know when and if to bring me out," Vader answered weakly as he passed over a datapad and started messing with the straps of the harness.

"My lord, I insist-" started the doctor.

He stopped as Vader shoved the harness in his hands to work with.

"What do you mean 'if'?" Ahsoka asked suspiciously.

"If I am to die, fine. Let it be so. I tried cheating death once and this was what I got. Never again," he stated firmly.

Any protest Ahsoka had, was silenced by the finality in his words.

"You're being more trusting than I would be," she was only able to say.

"Because, you're more Jedi than you want to admit," he stated as he and the doctor finished tightening the harness around him.

This stunned Ahsoka into silence as she stared at the datapad. It was then that she realized that she literally held his life in her hands. She controlled his oxygen, the crane controls, and the current controls. It was everything she would need to either protect or kill him.

"Use your instincts. You'll know what to do," he said as he put the oxygen mask on.

* * *

Vader heard a small hiss as cold oxygen started flowing through the tube and into the mask. After taking a deep, labored breath, he motioned for them to lift him in and closed his eyes. He first heard the silent hum of the crane and felt his feet lifted off the ground. Ignoring the intense pain, he forced himself into a meditative state It didn't take long for him to fully submerge himself in the force. Vader barely noticed the cold liquid rap itself around him as he was plunged into the tank. He felt a brief surge of panic as he felt his oxygen supply cut off, but he crushed it and willed himself to submerge even deeper into the force.

Soon the blackness took form as a dense cloud swirled around Vader. Not long after that, he felt solid ground appear under his feet. The dark, swirling cloud blinded him as to where he was at. However, he knew he wasn't alone. He could sense it. Just beyond the cloud, he could sense his master, Darth Sidious. With a sharp wave of the hands he forced the swirling cloud out of his way. Sure enough, waiting for him was Sidious's robed figure.

A brief look around visually and in the force told Vader they were alone in a black room. The only light came from four blood red candles. Between Vader and Sidious, he could see the outline of a small ceremonial table. This told him exactly where he was.

"Why am I not surprised you chose here," Vader asked glacially.

"Simply a matter of convenience," Sidious answered with a dismissive wave of the hand.

"Or is it fear? You couldn't even bring yourself to face me one on one," Vader countered.

This elicited a sinister chuckle from Darth Sidious.

"It is not the job of the Master to confront the Apprentice. It is the other way around. You confront me," he answered in the cold tone a parent might use with a defiant child.

"Yes, but you aren't exactly one for tradition, are you?" Vader stated, "After all, you've had -what?- three sworn, Sith Apprentices."

"Perhaps," Sidious answered before turning deathly serious, "We can discuss the merit of your treachery soon enough. The darkness, have you felt it?"

"Only me and every other force sensitive in the galaxy," Vader answered sharply.

"Then you know the threat we face. I have foreseen it. This galaxy will fall if the Empire is divided. Find your place by my side and together we can stop this darkness… this parasite from undoing the grand design of the Sith," Sidious offered.

Vader would've been put off by the sudden change of heart if it weren't for the blatant use of the force in his words. Despite sensing the force suggestion, Vader wavered due to his weakened state.

"As- No! I will not be put off by your games again," he barked.

"Then you have not seen it. Even now this 'Flood' takes hold. With every passing moment it grows stronger and stronger. It will consume all," Sidious pressed as he started to step around the table.

Matching the Emperor's moves, Vader stepped the opposite direction all while being sure to keep the table between his master and him.

"Then I will lead us to the end. You will answer for what you've done," he stated as he started to draw the force into himself.

While Vader didn't want combat in this kind of form, he wanted to be ready for it.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall," Sidious growled.

"As your power will be yours," Vader shot back.

"You fool. You will die. I have foreseen it. You and everyone you care about will die," he answered menacingly.

"Then so be it. I have seen death. I can live with some more," Vader replied.

"This is why you seek revenge for your wife?... Because you can 'live with it,'" Sidious asked in a condescending tone.

"She means nothing to me," he lied, "I simply wish to end this abomination. You're nothing but an insult to all the Sith have ever worked for."

Vader could see Sidious bristle underneath his robe. Clearly a nerve had been hit.

"Fool!" he shouted, "I am the culmination of thousands of years of work. It was I who brought down the Jedi. It was I who dissolved the Senate. It was I who brought the Sith into control of the Government, and it is I who has unlocked unlimited power."

Vader forced himself to resist the urge to flinch. Showing weakness was the easiest way to get himself killed, and he really didn't want to think on what death here would due to his physical body.

"No. You engineered the downfall of the Jedi, but I brought it into fruition. It was I who slaughtered them in the temple and it was my men and my army that murdered them on planets throughout the galaxy. It was I who enforced the disbanding of the Senate, and it was I who unlocked the secrets of power for you. Do not forget who brought you that nice set of holocrons you keep here on Byss," Vader countered calmly, but forcefully.

"Yes, but those secrets belong to me, and it was I who created the conditions for you to reach your potential. Your wife only held you back. In order to feel the full darkside, you must be broken. You must know pain. You must know loss, and you must embrace hate," Sidious argued, "You are who you are because of me."

This time it was Vader's turn to laugh.

"You think I owe you for my decent into darkness?" he asked, "It was only a matter of time. I was a ticking time bomb from the death of my Mother. You did nothing."

"I saved your life," Sidious argued angrily, "If it wasn't for me, that pathetic friend of yours would've let you burn alive."

"He did that anyway. I do not care that you killed Padme. Her death was tragic, but she would've been a problem. She sympathized with the Jedi. Thus she was a threat. Your lies are my issue, and it is your lies that you will answer for," Vader said threateningly as he continued his circle around the table.

"Yet you would choose to throw this all away, instead of facing the true darkness- the darkness that consumes all," Sidious replied as he moved his outstretched arms from left to front in an oval pattern in front of him, "Take a look. This is the real threat we face. This is the Flood."

As he was speaking, black clouds began to swirl around Vader. Despite his attempts to penetrate them, Vader soon found that he could not and resorted to taking in the images that were taking shape.

Green tentacled creatures soon took form inside the cloud. Some were large, and Vader noted with morbid curiosity that they looked like mutated versions of creatures he knew of. There were Tweleks, Rodians, Biths, Calamari, Chiss, and Humans. As he looked closer he could make out the shape Covenant troops also. There were Jackals, Elites, and Grunts as well. However, the overwhelming majority of the creatures were small, barely bigger than his boot. The black cloud continued to swirl as the vision expanded. The little creatures raced through the clouds as soldiers soon appeared, shooting as they appeared. Many of the small forms were killed instantly, as they disappeared into the black mist. However, they quickly overwhelmed the troopers, and Vader was forced to watch in horror as they burrowed themselves into their hosts chests. As this happened, the infected troopers cried in pain as they mutated into a greenish monstrosity of their former selves.

"Take a look Lord Vader," Sidious spat, "This is the true face of evil. This is the horror that you allow."

"No. This is not my doing. This is yours," he countered as he pushed out with the force.

"Give in. There is no other way. Only as one can we stop this," Sidious pressed.

"No. I will not let you do this. I will not die," he yelled as he let out a powerful force blast.

There was a sinister laugh as Sidious replied, "Your death is final. How many more must you take with you?"

"I will not die. This is not where it ends," he cried out as he let out an even more powerful force blast.

This one dissolved the cloud, leaving him face to face with his master.

"Are you so certain?" Sidious asked malevolently as he ignited his lightsaber.

Vader was still weakened and didn't take the bait. Instead he continued to draw the force into himself.

"Leave me," he commanded as he sent out a focused blast of lightning.

Sidious's blade caught the lightning but the blast sent him stumbling back. It was then that the room started shaking. Sidious didn't move to re engage but instead stood back, laughing. It was a dark maniacal laugh that cut through the sound of cracking wall. It seemed to cut to the core of Vader's very being. It was almost like he was entranced by it, as he barely noticed the room crumbling around him. Chunks of stone from the ceiling were falling around him and the ground was splintering as cracks wove their way through the room. In his peripheral vision, he saw a candle fall over and catch floor on fire- though he did not know or care how it managed to do so on a dry, stone floor. He was focused on the laugh- hypnotized by the insanity and malevolence that gave birth to it. Vader, did however, notice when the laugh started to change pitch. It got higher, louder, and almost seemed to come from a younger, feminine being.

As the hood was pulled back, he didn't see Sidious, but instead, he was greeted with Leia. However, she was different. Her hair was shorter, seemingly blacker (assuming that was possible) and her eyes were different. Instead of the deep blue that her mother had given her, Leia's eyes were a cold, piercing yellow.

"There is no stopping the fire," she stated glacially as a cruel grin took shape, "You would know, seeing as you started it."

With that, the room around him faded into black as other voices filtered into his ears.

 **(Byss System: Imperial Palace)**

Sidious let his anger flow freely through the force as he broke the connection. It was clear that he had underestimated his former student. This was not the boy that he had broken all of these years ago. No this was a monster, and a powerful one at that. However, Vader still had things to lose. Everyone, had a weakness. If Sidious was truly honest, which never happened, he would admit that even he had a weakness. However, unlike his, Vader's was clear and obvious. He had felt Vader's horror at seeing Leia in the vision. Sure the idea of training them was appealing. However, Vader didn't want them to be Sith. That much was disgustingly clear. The only up side was that it was a weakness he could work with.

"Soon, Vader, you will know the true power of the Darkside. You will know fear. Of this I promise," he vowed to himself as he moved for the exit of his inner sanctum.

While he would love to deal with Vader and his pathetic friends now, he had other, more pressing, threats to attend to at the moment.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey everyone. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I had a hard time figuring out how to do it. I had a lot of things that, due to pacing, needed to happen in this chapter. Plus, explaining the Flood required a lot of homework and general thinking and planning. Also, disclaimer, there is a flashback where I am borrowing scenes from the Star Wars movies. I am sorry if I messed up on the dialogue (I'm pretty sure I did not quote some of the lines perfectly). However, I do know that I didn't make any mistakes that would change any cannotic material. Anyway, here is the next chapter for your viewing pleasure. Please read, enjoy, and drop a review to let me know what you thought.**

 **So without further ado, I give you chapter 14.**

* * *

 **(ISD Executor)**

Vader sat in his quarters and tinkered with one of his spare helmets. Truthfully, he hoped to never use it, but he also knew to plan for every scenario, and this was one such plan. If he did it right, Vader would have a series of combat rated zero-g suits. He had only been out of the tank for a few hours, and according to Dr. Halsey he should be sleeping. However, he could sleep when he was dead. He had plans to make and things to do. As he worked, he opened himself in the force. He worked as hard as he could to make himself transparent. As he did this, he forced himself to swallow his pride and reach out in the force for Obi Wan. He was dead but he was there. Vader knew this.

"Obi Wan, we have much to discuss," he said to seemingly nothing.

After a couple seconds of waiting, Vader lost patience and went back to working on his helmet. He felt a rush of joy as he pulled out the last of the neuron spikes. It was at that moment that Vader felt a bright spot in the force behind him. This immediately sobered his mood.

"The boy… Where was he?" Vader asked hesitantly.

There was silence, and Vader could imagine the old man stroking his beard as he contemplated the sensitivity of that info.

"Tatooine, with the Lars" Obi Wan finally answered with a sigh.

Vader shook his head. This explained a lot. He had only met them once when he had buried his mother, but in appearances, Luke very much reminded him of Owen from that time.

"Thank you," Vader said quietly.

He felt surprise ripple through the force.

"Why? You want him as an apprentice don't you?" Obi Wan demanded.

This time Vader stood and faced the blue apparition of his old master. He did not miss that the words were present tense.

"Do you really think the Emperor would be dumb enough to let me train Luke, had he been found?" Vader replied.

"No, but that doesn't answer my question," Obi Wan pressed as his tired eyes narrowed.

"Do I want to train him? Yes. However, I don't want him or his sister to become Sith at my hand," Vader confirmed as he fought to meet Obi Wan's gaze.

"Funny. I didn't expect you to become a coward in that suit" Obi Wan shot back glacially.

Vader shook his head as he mentally talked himself out of chasing Obi Wan out of the room. If he had wanted to he could've, but he couldn't afford to.

"I never knew you to be so dense. My mistakes are mine alone. If they fall into psychotic egomania, it will not be at my hand. Their choices will be their own," Vader explained with an annoyed sigh.

"So, what do you want?" Obi Wan asked.

Vader noted that the question seemed to age the man by several years.

"You and I have had twenty years to think on our mistakes. I want to correct them," Vader replied, "Luke will not survive as a Jedi. I know this… I've seen it. However, I refuse to train the next Palpatine. Help me train him in the Force."

"That's what I've been doing," Obi Wan stated sharply.

"Not the light or the dark," Vader countered, "I want to train him in the force as a whole."

"That's impossible. You can't train in both the light and the dark at the same time. It simply washes out into a diluted, volatile mix," Obi Wan protested.

He was genuinely dumbfounded. Surely someone such as Vader would know this.

"Wrong. I did it. When I fought Talzin, I did it. I had the strength of a Sith and the clarity and focus of a Jedi," Vader argued, "It can be done."

"Yes, but look at how it left you. He can't be out of commission like that all the time," Obi Wan reasoned, "Not to mention, you only did it once in desperation."

"So he trains. It's like when I was first learning to use the force. Plus, neither of us will have Sidious trying to drain our bodies of life this time," Vader pressed, "Plus, it will be a learning experience for both of us."

Obi Wan shook his head in disagreement. Vader's statement didn't do much to change his opinion.

"Besides, if we fail, there are two Jedi Knights plus me to stop him," Vader pressed.

"If he falls, we need a backup plan," Obi Wan stated as he slowly shook his head.

It was clear through his tense features that he didn't like the idea.

"Leia. For all of his strength, Ezra isn't strong enough," Vader quickly answered.

Obi Wan's eyes widened.

"She's even more dangerous," he protested.

"Not if we force the issue early," Vader replied, "I have a plan for that. It's harsh but it will force her to confront her feelings."

"If we train both and one turns, there is a very real chance of both turning," Obi Wan cautioned.

"Every plan carries risk," Vader answered matter-of-factly.

Obi Wan nodded his head. It was clear in the force that he didn't like it, but there was no other choice. This darkness that was washing over the galaxy was going to make it excessively hard for any lightside users to function.

"Very well," he conceded, "I shall begin giving the right people warnings. I trust that you plan on telling her who her true parents were."

"I plan on giving her the truth. She will decide the rest. Just make sure she doesn't leave the base," Vader explained.

"I'll let Luke know," Obi Wan said before disappearing.

With him gone, Vader put the last touches on the packet of info he was sending to the Alliance Command Center. This was going to hurt a lot, for both of them.

 **(Kentara Station: ISD Conviction)**

Admiral Thrawn gritted his teeth as he read the flashcom from Central Command. The situation had escalated much faster than even he had anticipated. Coruscant had gone from the towering flag of the Empire to a warzone in twenty four hours. Even worse, they had lost the fleet sent in to extract Imperial Intelligence, the ISB, and other entities.

"Damn fool," he cursed under his breath as he glanced up from the datapad.

With that out of his system, he went back to reading. So far, they had isolated outbreaks on at least three other worlds. However, the Empire had been slightly faster. Infections on both Naboo and Chrystosis were ended with Base-Delta-Zero strikes on the areas. As a result, Theed and one of Chrystosis's major ports no longer existed. However, Thrawn seriously doubted this was over. At least three ships had escaped Coruscant and the battle was far from over. On top of that, several ships from the Halo ring were also missing, and the third of the out breaks happened to be on Utapu and hadn't been as easy to stop. The Imperial Garrison had taken one hell of a hit and was still doing a floor by floor sweep of every one of those sinkhole-cities. The results wouldn't be conclusive for at least the next few days.

He was interrupted as the blast doors to the bridge hissed open. He looked up to be greeted by a red haired woman. She was dressed in an Imperial Naval Uniform that labeled her as an Admiral.

 _Too bad, few would acknowledge her as an Admiral,_ Admiral Thrawn thought with annoyance as she walked up to the holotable.

"Admiral Daala, how are you doing?" he asked.

Upon his arrival, he had been forced to catch her up on the relevant events of Vader's defection. This included informing her of her lover's death.

"Well, sir," she replied crisply.

However, the pain in her eyes said different.

"Good. It appears we have had a situation developing in the core. I need to go extract some individuals. I suspect that Vader will want to strike while I am gone. I would be a fool not to think that he has sources that will tell him when I have left. As such, I am trusting you to hold the line in my absence. You will have your fleet, plus I am leaving the Sixth and Fifth Fleets. All are under your Command. Am I understood?" Thrawn explained.

"Yes sir," she responded with a nod.

Despite her crispness, her mind was clearly racing as she tried to understand what could have possibly caused the entire Seventh Fleet to be recalled on an extraction mission. As if to answer her unspoken questions, Thrawn gave her the data pad he was holding before producing another one and passing it over too.

"Some reading material to keep you updated," he stated.

At this point Thrawn's Captain approached.

"Sir, Mara has arrived in system," he reported.

"Good, order her to dock in in the Gorgon. Word is that the Emperor has issued her orders. Also, inform the Krayton and the Indomitable that it's time to come home.

"Yes sir," the man replied crisply before turning back to carry out his orders.

"You have your orders. You are dismissed," Admiral Thrawn concluded.

"Yes sir. I will see to it that the Rebels are stopped," Admiral Daala acknowledged.

With that, she drew to attention, and gave a crisp salute before perfectly turning on her right heel and exiting the bridge.

 **(Alliance Base: Dathomir)**

Vader stood in the center of the empty storage bay. He quietly made some minor repairs to his lightsaber as he waited. It had been a few hours, and she should be done any time now. As he did this, he took calm measured breaths to steady his emotions. It would not due to kill Leia because he couldn't control himself. From a few levels up, Vader could feel her emotions raising. First it was confusion. Then it was anger. Then there was fear. Then came the emotion that woke the monster. The hate resonated through the force. It was enough to make Vader involuntarily flinch. Finally he felt her force signature start moving.

Using the force, he lowered the lights as he moved for the center of the room with his back to the entryway.

* * *

Ahsoka watched the security feed so intently that she missed the small crowd form around her. On her left was a very worried Luke. On the right was an equally worried and more suspicious Ezra. Watching from behind Luke and Ahsoka was Commander Palmer. If Vader double crossed them, Commander Palmer would be the one to send in the waiting Spartan teams and Kanan.

"Here we go," Ahsoka mumbled as Leia strode down the passageway.

"Why did he put his back to the door," Commander Palmer asked.

As far as she was concerned, that was about the stupidest move he could make.

"It's to put her off," Luke replied, "She wouldn't just kill someone in cold blood."

"And nothing says cold blood like shooting someone in the back," Commander Palmer reasoned.

The only answer was a nod from Ahsoka as they watched Leia march toward the storage bay. Everyone's breath caught as Leia walked through the door. As Luke predicted, she didn't shoot him. However, she was definitely just waiting for an excuse.

* * *

"Hello, Leia Organa," Vader greeted flatly before tilting his head curiously, "Or is it Skywalker?"

There was silence. It was clear that her initial rush of emotions were gone. Now she was starting to wonder how good of an idea this really was.

Unable to bare the silence, Vader pressed, "You came for something."

"I came for answers," Leia stated sharply.

"What answers? I gave you the truth. Why would you believe anything else that I say?" Vader quizzed.

"I… I just need to hear it from you. If I have to live with this, so do you," Leia answered uneasily before hardening her resolve, "You don't get to hide behind a datapad."

Vader's face hardened as he turned to face her.

"Come. See what I have lived with," Vader ordered as he stepped forward and extended his right arm.

Leia stiffened as he turned, but resisted the urge to draw her hold out blaster. Before she knew it, her hand was drifting out. However, before she could yank it back, Vader grasped it in an iron grip.

The room quickly dissolved into black. Leia quickly became aware of the sound of blaster fire. Ear piercing screams and shouts could be heard over the mess of noise.

"What if I told you there was a way you could save the ones you love from dying?" asked in a smooth yet oddly sinister voice.

As the voice faded away, she was dumped into a red colored passageway with soft, expensive carpeting.

Standing face to face with each other were two men. One was black haired with an equally black robe. In his hands was a blue lightsaber. Across him was a figure in red robes.

She quickly recognized him as the Emperor.

"So are you going to kill me?" the Emperor chided.

"I would sure like to," snapped the black haired man.

However, his slow retreat toward the exit made it clear that he had other plans.

As he moved through the door, a violent wind ripped through the passageway, tearing up the wall and spinning up the room in a cyclone.

She soon found herself in the Emperor's office. However, unlike the few times she had been there, the room was in disarray. There were smoldering slash marks all over the room, the back window was shattered, and three robed, dead bodies laid on the floor in front of the entryway. Kneeling in front of the Emperor was the same man in black.

"I do… Master," the man stated with only a little hesitance.

"Then henceforth, you shall be known as Darth Vader," the Emperor announced triumphantly.

As the man rose, the dots connected as to what Leia was watching.

"By the Force," she mumbled as the man- no, Skywalker- listened with hardening resolve as the Emperor detailed his orders.

This was it. This is where Anakin had "died". No wonder he was listed KIA. Just by his demeanor, Leia knew this was not the man that had nearly killed the Emperor earlier. He was dead. She wanted to scream and shout. Immediately she went for her blaster, only to find it gone. Silently, she watched in silent awe as Sidious gave his orders.

"It will be done, my Lord," Vader acknowledged with an obedient bow.

Then that same violent cyclonic wind came back. However, this time she landed, not in Coruscant, but in a much different place. The heat was intense. Around her, an orange glow was cast on everything. She quickly realized that she was on an overlook. Feeling drawn inside, she looked around just long enough to note the destroyed droid and river of lava below her. As she stood up she heard screams of terror from inside.

"Please… I beg you. Lord Sidious promised us peace. He said the war was over," she heard a Neimoidian protest as she entered through the door.

"What? You don't like your peace?" Vader asked with a cruel smile.

She watched the man's protest get cut off as Vader cut a neat line straight through his heart and left lung.

As the man walked out of the door opposite of her, Leia gasped as she stared at all of the dead bodies. They were scattered everywhere- or at least pieces of them were. Many of them were missing various limbs. However, she noticed several familiar faces from her studies.

"So this was Emperor Palpatine's end to the war," she mumbled as she drifted toward the door.

As she was staring at the carnage, she barely registered the sound of a ship landing. As she exited out the door, she saw Vader standing on the ramp talking with a woman. However, Vader was surprisingly calm, or at least he started that way. She talked frantically, with him cutting in to give answers or give what appeared to be words of comfort. However, he soon began pacing and Leia felt a shiver go down her spine.

"I put an end to the war!" Vader finally yelled, "I did what needed to be done."

Leia was too far away to catch everything that was said, but from what she could tell, the woman wasn't buying it and was getting more and more desperate and worried. That's when she noticed the woman was obviously pregnant.

 _Mom?!_ she thought in horror as the woman started to lift off the ground.

She gasped for breath as she began to claw at her neck.

"Let her go Anakin," demanded a voice from the top of the ramp, "She has no part in this."

This seemed to grab Vader's attention. He promptly dropped his hold and began to back away as he started to argue with the man that Leia recognized as a much younger Obi Wan. There was an audible thud as her unconscious body hit the ground.

The violent winds picked up and she was promptly slammed into a metal catwalk. She noticed with a brief shiver that the intense heat and ash were replaced by a cold wind. On either side was a metal railing. Behind her was the black shadow known as Vader. In front of her was a person about her age. He was clinging to a piece of metal equipment for dear life as he hung over the bottomless chasm below. A closer look revealed that he was clutching a stub where his hand use to be. After that first brief second she realized with shock that this was Luke she was looking at. However, he was terrified in a way she had yet to see him be.

"No," boomed Vader's artificial voice, "I am your father."

At that moment Leia's vision faded to black as she heard Luke's rapid denial devolve into a horrified yell.

* * *

As he let go of her hand, Leia staggered back with eyes wide in horror. However, that horror promptly gave way to rage as the force screamed a warning to Vader.

"You monster!" she yelled as she produced her hold out blaster.

As she leveled her blaster, Vader used the force to grab that arm and for it up while squeezing her wrist. A stray shot fired into the ceiling as she dropped the blaster. In the same instant she lashed out with her other hand. Vader felt the force blast slam into him. Had he not been expecting it, he would've been taken off his feet, but he was expecting it and simply absorbed it.

Instead, he used the force to send her tumbling across the hanger. Stunned by the impact, Leia was a little slow getting up. As she did, she went for her blaster. Using the force, Vader tried grabbing it. He paused as he felt some resistance from the blaster. Looking up, he saw Leia's hand outstretched. Her eyes had turned yellow. Vader quickly let go. The blaster flew into her hand. Almost instantly, Leia opened up with the blaster. Vader's lightsaber came to life just in time to block a series of headshots.

As she adjusted her aim, both doorways opened as two Spartan teams rushed into the room with weapons drawn, leading them was Kanan. Much to both people's surprise, their weapons were trained at her. Feeling a strong sense of betrayal, she turned her back to Vader and leveled her blaster at Kanan. There was a visible ripple that went through the Spartans as they fought against the reflex to shoot.

"Leia, stand down. This isn't what you want to do," Kanan ordered.

"Leave. This isn't your fight," she demanded.

"Nor is it yours," he countered.

"It is too. This- This monster needs to answer for his crimes," she yelled.

"And I will in due time," Vader cut in as he covered the distance between them.

She whipped around as Vader got within arms reach. Ignoring the blaster, Vader simply waved his hand in front of her face, and Leia's world went black.

Vader caught her as she fell. Even asleep, he could feel her turmoil. They needed to act quickly or she would be lost permanently.

"We need to get her to a medical bay, now," he stated as he tossed her over his shoulder and scooped up her blaster.

As Vader lead the way to the medical bay, he noticed most of the Spartans and Kanan had broken off. However, the Chief silently stayed with them. Vader reasoned that it was under orders. Finally, they made it to the medical bay. He quickly passed her off to a medical droid with orders to restrain her for her own safety and that of those around her.

"Dismissed," Vader stated as he turned to the spartan.

"My orders were to make sure neither you or her do anything stupid," the Chief countered.

"Yes, and if they were truly worried, they wouldn't have sent you alone," Vader argued.

"A medical bay would get very small very fast with an entire team," the Chief answered.

"If your superiors have a problem, send them to me… Now dismissed," Vader ordered.

Seeing that he wasn't going to win the argument, the Chief reluctantly left the bay. As he left, Vader saw Leia's eyes darting back and forth underneath her eyelids. He gently placed he fingers on her forehead and reached into the force. Immediately the flashbacks and memories flooded him. None were pleasant and not all were hers.

"So, that's what you saw," he mumbled as he broke the connection.

He then began to pour comfort and a feeling of safety into the force. It wasn't a lot and wouldn't help much, but that's all he could do until she woke up. His focus was broken as Ahsoka and Luke entered the room.

"How is she?" Luke asked quickly.

"Not permanently lost," Vader answered, "She snapped. What she saw was a glimpse of my fall. She saw it all- at least enough to draw some conclusions. That said, she's still quite confused."

"Snapped? Snapped is you choking Poggle the Lesser for lifesaving information. This was a full on turn," Ahsoka argued.

"No. She has a multitude of unhealed wounds. She has learned to hide her pain and carry on. It all came rushing forth. Part of her wanted to believe that I felt remorse for my actions. What she saw was a man drunk on his new found power," Vader replied calmly, "A few years back I forced her to watch her father and mother get atomized. Now she just got to watch her actual mother die. I'm sure you can connect the dots."

"She wanted revenge," Luke reasoned.

"At a core level, yes. However, I think you'll find that her motivations were not that cut-and-dry," Vader answered.

"So now what?" Luke asked as he cast a worried glance at her.

"She will learn to deal with those feelings and use them," Vader answered as he let out a sigh, "In the meantime, we need to have a conversation with command."

"Yes. While you were gone, Piett reported in. Thrawn has taken the Seventh Fleet out of the Maw. He's running, full burn, for Coruscant," Ahsoka agreed.

Vader frowned as he walked out of the medical bay.

"Is something wrong?" she asked as she fell in beside him.

"Yes. The situation is deteriorating faster than I thought. We need to move, now," Vader answered.

"Where though? We don't have a plan," she pressed.

"We will soon enough," Vader answered with a calculating grin as he picked up his pace.

 _I guess some things never change,_ Ahsoka thought with a sigh as she followed him.

On the way, Ahsoka started gathering all of the relevant leaders for the meeting. As they entered, they were met with Kanan, the Arbiter, Admiral Hood, and Commander Palmer who had never left.

"What did we get out of all of that?" Commander Palmer quizzed.

"She's taken the first steps. Now we have to make sure she doesn't go the wrong way," Vader answered.

Truthfully, it was a lot more complicated than that, but he wasn't in the mood to try explaining it. Commander Palmer wasn't satisfied by the explanation, but it was clear that neither Jedi or Vader was about to elaborate. So she let the topic drop. However, Admiral Hood wasn't quite there yet.

"Is she going to be a danger?" he asked.

"No. However, she won't be making any major calls for a while. If we dump her into a position of command now, she could become a danger," Vader explained matter-of-factly.

"You were dumped in a position of command," Kanan countered, "Isn't the idea to make her effective in both the light and the darkside?"

"I was trained as a weapon, and developed an unhealthy bloodlust due to it. She isn't being trained as a weapon, and I won't have her that volatile. The last thing we need is dead commanders," Vader replied.

His explanation seemed to satisfy everyone and the room fell silent as officers started filtering in. First it was Commander Appo. Next came General Veers who was quickly followed by Captain Rex. A minute later, the rest of the Ghost crew walked in with Ezra in the lead. Soon after, Admiral Piett and Mon Mothma walked in. Seeing that everyone was there, Mothma brought the meeting to a start. Immediately, Admiral Piett stepped forward and inserted a data chip into the holotable. Everyone was rewarded with a map of the Maw. Inside were several red dots, marking the approximate position of Imperial warships.

"Courtesy of our own sources, we know that the Thrawn is enroute to Coruscant on an extraction mission. Twenty-four hours ago, the planet came under attack from an unknown race. The situation has dissolved fast enough that the defensive fleet was all but destroyed along with most of the reinforcements sent to aid them. Half the planet is declared as lost and they are trying to evacuate Intelligence and political personnel and materials off planet," Admiral Piett explained, "Less reliable claims have the Imperials attempting to firebomb the planet. However, our source couldn't confirm that."

There were surprised murmurs that rippled through the crowd.

As they died down, Piett added, "There are a total of three systems attacked, but Coruscant is the hardest hit. This leaves the Maw defense fleet, the Sixth fleet, and the Fifth fleet still on station."

"You said they don't know who did this?" Mothma clarified.

The disbelief in her voice was hard to miss.

"Yes ma'am," Piett answer crisply.

"Correction Admiral. I know who they are," Vader cut in.

Seeing that he had everyone's attention, he described his conversation with Emperor Palpatine that he had while in the chamber. Everyone listened with great interest, albeit with some skepticism from some of the non force sensitives. As he was describing them, Vader noticed that the Arbiter, Commander Palmer, and Admiral Hood had a look of recognition. As he continued, he felt fear and apprehension start rolling off them despite their mildly concerned looking faces.

"You know what I'm talking about," Vader observed as he locked eyes with the Arbiter.

"Yes. We do. This is not the first time the Flood has gotten loose. However, this is by far the worst outbreak," the Arbiter replied grimly.

"Tell me about them. Who are they? How do we stop them?" Vader quizzed.

The Arbiter let out a sigh as he turned to the holotable.

"Roland. You have all of the gathered information. I think it is best to let you explain the Flood," he stated.

It may have been framed as a suggestion, but the order was clear.

"The Flood is a race of semi-sentient beings. Depending on their stage of evolution, they can display a sentient- albeit mob-like- mentality. However, their motives are purely primal. They live to eat," Roland started.

"Eat what?" Commander Appo cut in, though he feared that he knew the answer.

"Any organic being with quote, 'sufficient biomass.' Unfortunately, 'sufficient biomass' is a term that includes every known sentient race that contains a central nervous system." Roland answered.

"That sounds pleasant," Rex mumbled sarcastically.

"It get's better," Admiral Hood answered while mirroring his sarcasm.

"I'm not sure better is the word you're looking for," Roland stated before pulling up images of the different flood forms and continuing, "They can come in the small infection forms, stalker, or sentry forms. The larger ones are carrier and combat forms."

"That one almost looks like an Elite that got caught in the blast of a bioweapon," General Veers noted with a mix of disgust and curiosity as he pointed to the combat form.

"Because he was an Elite at one point," the Arbiter replied bitterly.

"Yes, the infection forms often times attack in groups of ranging from just a few all the way to thousands at a time," Roland cut in, "They use superior numbers to overwhelm their targets and one attacks and burrows itself into the victim. From there it takes over it central nervous system and seizes control of their body's functions. It also collects and processes the being's memories and knowledge. It is at this point that the person essentially becomes a flood form itself. It often develops into a combat form. However, it may also turn into a carrier form or start as one form and evolve into the other if required of it."

Roland paused for questions. This time it was Hera who asked.

"How do they communicate. You said they can display some level of sentient intelligence. This means communication, and communication is a weakness that can be exploited," she quizzed.

"We don't know for sure. However, this leads to the next major set of problems. As the flood gathers memories and knowledge from its victims, it pools all of that to create a Gravemind. From there, the Gravemind takes over control of the flood and acts as the being in command of all flood forces responsible for its creation and their offspring. This also means that the more intelligent the victims and knowledgeable the victims are, the more deadly the flood become," Roland answered.

"Central being with ultimate control? I say we just kick their stool out from under them and catch them as the chaos kicks in," Sabine suggested.

"She's right. What you've described is a hive mind. We kill the Gravemind and stop them before another one develops," Vader added.

"No. It's not that easy. We don't just have to worry about the living. With the Food, peace does not come with death," the Arbiter replied, "Their infection forms can infect and,"- he let out a sigh as he tried to find the right word- "reanimate the bodies of the dead. I don't think I need to explain what this does to their numbers. Not to mention, the Gravemind itself is an almost impossible opponent to fight. If you get caught by one of its tentacles, it's over."

This, almost no one believed. However, Vader replied before anyone could speak.

"It's not impossible," Vader stated as though answering the statement on everyone's lips, "During the Clone Wars, me and another Jedi Master dealt with a Geonosian hive mind so powerful that she could keep control of her warriors even after they were shot or cut to pieces. They lived even after being buried alive. Later investigation would find that there were multiple hive minds like this. The Republic was forced to leave the planet until after Emperor's rise, by which time scientists had weaponized a chemical compound that severed the connection and wiped out the Geonosians."

"Well the good thing is that sufficient mutilation tends to let them stay dead. The Flood seem to prefer intact victims," Roland said.

"That's good. We shouldn't have to look hard for the weapons necessary," Sabine responded, "I know where there's a whole cash of old Z-6 rotary blasters for sale."

"You said that this wasn't the first outbreak. What happened the first time?" Mothma asked.

"It's a long story. The simple version is that the Flood had created a Gravemind and launched on the Covenant during a battle. In the chaos, the Covenant forces were overwhelmed and one of their vessels escaped into slipspace. The vessel crashed into our home world where there was also a battle going on. Through a lot of blood, sweat, and luck we were able to trigger a weapon that killed the Gravemind and all of the Flood tied to it," Admiral Hood explained.

Across from the Admiral, Luke nodded his head in understanding but noted that the man seemed to be hiding something.

There was silence until Hera finally spoke up.

"What are we going to do about supplies and ships. This fleet is huge, but we aren't winning a war with it," she asked.

"She's right. Our other problem is that we can't afford to have the galaxy imploding if we have this kind of outside threat," Kanan added.

"No. That's why I've altered our targets," Vader answered, "First, I need to know, did you get that list of Inquisitor's?"

"Yes. Twenty-seven names over the last 10 years," Roland stated matter-of-factly.

"Good. I can work on that. At the same time, we will move on the Maw. We have the ships to do that. Then, we move for Byss," Vader explained as he illustrated the plan on a holomap, "Once the Emperor is dead, I will fall into the position of command. By default, we will have the majority of the Navy to work with, minus a sector fleet, or two."

"How will you be in command? Surely, news of your defection has traveled fast," the Arbiter quizzed.

"No. News of Admiral Piett's defection will travel fast. The majority of the galaxy doesn't understand or care about the intricacies of Sith relationships. All they know is that I am the Emperor's second-in-command who looks and acts like he came out of a horror story. The Emperor and others like Thrawn and Isard will keep my part as quiet as possible. If word gets out that I defected, then they face the hard task of explaining why. It calls to question the morality of the Empire and adds validity to the rebellion. On top of that, everyone likes to believe that they're on the right side of history, especially when it comes to the use of force and violence. All you have to do is prove them wrong," Vader explained as he gave the Arbiter a very pointed look.

The Arbiter may have been bad at reading human facial expressions, but it wasn't hard to miss the second meaning behind Vader's words.

"Therefore, as second-in-command, they will turn to you for orders," the Arbiter reasoned.

"Precisely. There are the diehards in the core that may not like our alliance, but they should be few and easily dealt with," Vader confirmed.

"I can put the word out as to what the Emperor has really been up to in the shadows. We have some info that several of the Naval officers will find... interesting," Admiral Piett added as he tried to find the right word.

"What info?" Ahsoka asked as her eyes narrowed.

"All in due time. It is not relevant to you at this moment," Vader interjected before steering away the conversation, "That should at least give us some men. I know of at least two officers that I can leverage to our side. However, in the mean time I know of a certain crime boss that has some heavy duty equipment for sale."

"How heavy duty are we talking?" Rex asked, "It was my understanding that the Empire had scrapped most of the really powerful stuff."

"No. Some of the far outer rim garrisons were stuck using the equipment until a few years back. As they started to see the upgrades, Moffs and other high ranking commanders found that they could make large sums of easy money by falsifying some records and selling the old crap. By the time any honest ISB agents figured it out and cracked down, the damage was done and most of the equipment was gone," Admiral Piett answered, "It was a huge scandal in my sector, after I left. As it was, I barely dodged the back blast, myself."

"It's serious stuff. There's a few gunships plus ammo, seven or eight AT TEs, a squad of AT RTs, and a large, miscellaneous cash of ordinance and small arms," Vader added.

Rex whistled in amazement.

"That stuff just had to be in the one place we didn't look," Rex commented.

"It just recently came for sale by a man by the name of Nam Corsavo," Vader explained, "He runs a massive offshoot of the Pike Syndicate. His predecessor bought all of the stuff to defend against the threat of Imperial "interference" in his affairs."

"What happened?" asked Commander Palmer out of curiosity.

"He never got the chance to use it," Vader answered, "He took a laser to the back of the head by one of his men, and that person struck a much more favorable deal with the Empire that rendered the equipment useless."

"That's a start," Mothma acknowledged with a nod.

"Biding starts in a few days. We will need someone there to enter for us," Vader announced before turning to the crew of the Ghost, "Why don't Kanan and Ezra work on the biding for those, and the rest of you can acquire about those rotary blasters."

"Won't we want all of the Jedi we can for the battle?" Admiral Hood asked.

"Normally I would say yes, but with my eyes, I do better in limited engagements and behind the lines work," Kanan answered as he pointed to his eyes.

Luke looked closer. He hadn't noticed it before, but sure enough, the man had a set of cybernetic eyes. The webbing of black and blue that marked his eyelids and the area close to his eyes told Luke that it was possibly a black market job.

Clearly Admiral Hood saw it too because he nodded his head in agreement and fell silent.

"I think it's time that we pulled Solo out. We'll need him for his contacts if nothing else," Mothma declared.

A sinister grin made its way onto Vader's face.

"I'll be happy to pay Jabba a visit. That man owes me blood," Vader answered.

The way in which he said it made everyone shift uneasily.

"You two have a history?" Commander Palmer quizzed.

"Anyone from Tatooine has a history with him," Vader replied glacially.

"We have a plan and a man inside. We just need to execute it," Luke objected.

"Give me a picture and his cover. I'll get him out," Vader ordered.

Luke went to object but was stopped as Ahsoka placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned in.

"He spent his first ten years as a slave on that rock, and he holds Jabba responsible for his mother's death. He's not going to back down," she whispered quickly.

Luke's eyes widened in understanding as he nodded his head in agreement.

"I'll get a picture," Luke agreed.

At that moment, Vader's comm chimed. With an annoyed sigh, he pressed the button.

"What is it?" Vader asked with obvious displeasure.

"The princess is waking up. I have her strapped down but the sedatives are rapidly warring off," the doctor announced, "She's starting to test the restraints rather forcefully."

Vader looked up and locked eyes with Ahsoka. Getting the message, she hurried out of the command center.

"Understood. Do not let her leave. Ahsoka is on her way now," Vader ordered before adding, "and do not sedate her. I need her awake and alert."

"Understood. Medibay, out," concluded the doctor.

After the channel was closed, Vader turned to Admiral Piett.

"Work with the other officers. I want a battle plan drawn up and ready for my review within the next three hours. Also, see to it that my fighter is transferred to the Home One. I will be there, working with Leia on the way. I will transfer back to the fleet after the battle," Vader ordered.

"Yes my Lord," Admiral Piett replied crisply.

Without another word, Vader followed after Ahsoka. Time was short and the clock was ticking.


	15. Chapter 15

Vader felt himself becoming more and more agitated as he got closer to the bay. This was not a pleasant process, but he had to do it. Much to his relief, she seemed to be slowly calming down. After what felt like forever, he arrived in the medical bay. It immediately became clear why she was calming down at all. Ahsoka was walking her through some Jedi calming techniques. As he entered, Leia's eyes snapped open. Much to his relief, they had lost their yellowness.

"You," she growled as she jerked against the restraints.

With a casualness more akin to Sidious than himself, Vader waved his hand and undid the restraints. They hadn't been too tight, but Leia still rubbed her free wrists.

"Yes. You do know what happened, right?" Vader asked.

"You killed her... First you murdered the Jedi and then you murdered her," she snapped.

Vader took a calming breath before stating, "That's why you tried to kill me."

"You don't just get to walk away from that. On top of that, you're a danger to everyone here. For all I know, you could be playing everyone to take power yourself," she answered sharply.

"No. No I don't get to," he agreed as he lowered his head slightly, "While you were sleeping, you saw things. What were they?"

"It was nothing for you to worry about," Leia answered quickly.

Ahsoka frowned as she walked over to Leia's side.

As she laid a comforting had on Leia's shoulder she leaned in and whispered, "You need to say what you saw. No one can help you unless you're ready to face it."

"It's none of his business," she whispered back sharply.

"Yes, but sometimes a little info can help an enemy move in a way that is helpful," Ahsoka pressed.

It was clear that Leia wasn't thinking clearly. As such, all her logic wasn't clear but Ahsoka knew she needed to appeal to it. There was a thoughtful pause before Leia spoke.

"I saw people die. I watched as the Alliance was destroyed because of you," she stated as she pointed an accusing finger at Vader.

"Let me guess. It was a black shadowy figure systematically killing everyone," Vader asked.

Vader was sure it the same vision that he himself had been having since his defection. However, unlike her, he knew exactly who it was.

"To a point," Leia conceited.

"Ok. Close your eyes," he ordered.

"Why?" she demanded.

"Just do it," Vader pressed as he laced a force suggestion into his words.

It wasn't enough to fully sway her but with a little help from Ahsoka, it worked. Though it did garner a quizzical look from the former Jedi.

Seeing her eyes shut, Vader gave the next set of direction.

"Think about the figure. Who is it?" he quizzed.

"It's you," she argued.

"Focus on what is there, not what you want to be there," Vader ordered.

With a resigned sigh, she began to focus. Soon her breaths went from deep and measured to fast and rapid as she descended into the vision.

"I can't- I can't see," she stated nervously.

"Focus," he pressed.

"I see darkness... Pillars... Troopers in white sprinting down a hall... I hear laser fire..." -Leia's breathing started to accelerate- "There's bodies... mutilated... disfigured... a figure in black... green monsters... there's screaming... and-"

Leia went silent as her eyes darted back and forth under her eyelids and her breathing further accelerated. After a few seconds she started into unintelligible but scared mumbling. He could see the muscles around her eyes twitch as she tried to open them. However, her eyes defiantly stayed closed. Wordlessly Vader waited for this to finish as he tracked the rapid change of emotions. The fear at the core was nearly intoxicating.

"We have to bring her back," Ahsoka declared as she went to help Leia.

However, Vader quickly stopped her.

"No. She needs this," Vader replied firmly.

Ahsoka was about to protest when she felt a shift in the force. Leia's storm of emotions quieted as she started to focus. The fear was still there, but Leia was no longer consumed by it. Though Vader wanted to know what exactly Leia was seeing, he didn't think it was a good idea to interfere. However, he remembered his own premonitions, and decided against his first instinct.

Pressing his fingers against his head, he reached into the force. The rapidly changing scene flashed through his mind. It was most assuredly in the Jedi Temple. The troops were his. The bodies of dead and dying Jedi were everywhere with various colors of blood and black blaster scorching painting the walls and floor. Amongst the dead, Vader could see various leaders of the Rebellion. However, he saw Flood forms in the mix too. As one scene passed by, he could've sworn he saw the Emperor's body. The image settled on a black robed figure standing over the dead body of a man, in a white shirt, black vest, and equally black pants. laying a couple feet away was a blaster pistol. A closer look revealed the cause of death as a cauterized stab wound to the chest. Slowly the figure pulled back her hood to reveal long, black hair. That was when Vader knew exactly who it was. Seeing as he had a measure of control, he removed himself from the vision.

As he pulled his fingers from Leia's forehead, the room returned back to normal. Second's later, Leia's eyes snapped open. As her senses told Leia that she was back in the medibay, her breathing and heartrate started to slow down. A look of hardened resolve took residence on her face as Leia got up to walk out of the medibay.

Much to Ahsoka's surprise, Vader simply moved out of the way and let her pass. She went to stop her, but Vader grabbed Ahsoka by the shoulder to stop her.

"She needs time. Pressing her now will only make things worse," Vader explained.

"So will letting her sit on this," Ahsoka countered.

"Yes, but I need you to trust me. I went down this road. She's having premonitions, but they are mixing with the past. I had them after I fell. There were times where I would see exactly how a fight was going to happen, but I would see it in the Jedi temple or some other place and time from the past," Vader explained, "She will sort out the past from present, but she needs to do it on her own."

Before she could reply, Ahsoka's comlink chimed, and it happened to be a request to come to the command center.

"We'll finish this later," she declared firmly as she exited the room.

 **(ISD Conviction: somewhere in hyperspace)**

Admiral Thrawn walked over to the holotable and quickly pressed in the frequency code. He was immediately greeted with a very tired looking Isard. Her hair and uniform were still pristine, but one look in her eyes told him most of what he needed to know. The carbine in her right hand said the rest.

"We are two minutes out. Are you ready?" he asked.

"Yes. Our ships are loaded and ready to go. However, we can't leave. If we try to go up on our own, they'll pick us off as we come up. They can't hit the broadside of a barn, but with that many ships they're bound to hit something," she replied.

"Good. It is my understanding that you have another Executor-Class ship in play," Thrawn stated.

Director Isard wavered as her eyes narrowed. No one was to know of that. However, there was no use denying it, she decided.

"Yes. I'll light up her secondary tags when we move," Isard confirmed.

"Good. Use it to shield the smaller transports. You are responsible for getting _everyone_ out. The Emperor will accept no less. When we arrive, leave the planet and run straight for Byss. That is the new capital," Thrawn ordered.

"Understood," she agreed with a nod.

Without another word, he cut the connection and returned to his command chair.

"Sir, all ships are green and standing by," the Captain reported.

"Good," he acknowledged before shifting his attention, "Helm, bring us out."

"Yes sir," the man answered crisply.

Within seconds, the blue and black of hyperspace gave way to realspace, and a very real battle. The viewport flooded with the view of Coruscant's nightside. Directly ahead was the Coruscant Defense Fleet. Green lasers flew back and forth between the damaged, burning shadows that formed the defensive fleet. However, Thrawn didn't have time to marvel at the battle. He quickly looked and processed the relevant info.

"Reduce speed by half, switchover to secondary tags," he ordered before pressing a comm button on his chair and ordering, "This is Grand Admiral Thrawn. I am on station with the Seventh Fleet. All ships under Imperial Command, report in."

There was a ripple of activity as the crew went to carry out Thrawn's orders. As he listened, he rose and walked over to the tactical board that was to the left of the holotable. As he waited, he worked to confirm everyone's position and act accordingly. Red dots marked the area just in front of the planet. Next to each dot was a number pair that gave its location relative to the bridge of his warship. As the first name came in, he tapped a key and marked it green, signifying that it was friendly. As he did this, he watched his own fleet take up position a few thousand kilometers in front of the nearest moon.

After the seventh name, there was silence over the comms. Much to his frustration, they were scattered and at least three didn't have long until they were overrun.

"This is Admiral Thrawn. I am giving one final chance to call in. Any ships that fail to do so, will be considered enemies," Thrawn warned.

There was the occasional squelch or garbled, inhuman noise over the comms, but that was it.

"Captain," he called.

"Yes sir?" asked the captain as he briskly walked over.

"Commence attack," he ordered as he pointed to an area with two green dots, "We'll hit here. Those two ships don't have much time left. Order them to focus fire on those two battle stations."

"Yes sir," he answered crisply before turning back to the crew and barking, "Helm, bring us up to attack speed. Launch bomber wings 1, 3, and 5. Deploy fighters for escort. Weapons and shields on full."

This sent another ripple of activity and overlapping conversations as the crew carried out their orders. As is normally the case, the smaller cruisers took the lead as the fleet rushed forward. Being faster and more maneuverable, they would be the advance force for the fleet. The only thing ahead of them would be the bombers and fighters. Behind them, the two large Executor- Class warships and smaller Imperial-Class warships would work together to break through the gap started by the cruisers. For this one, Thrawn was detailing two cruisers and four Imperial Star Destroyers for the task of rear guard.

As the fleet closed the distance, several Flood controlled warships broke off to engage. However the manner in which they did it was slow and sloppy. Thrawn resisted the urge to shake his head. Their fields of fire were off, there was little to no fighter support, and they had very little of their shields left. The far right ship was glowed a dull orange as a battle station behind it was consumed in a fiery explosion that spewed chunks of durasteel everywhere. The Admiral frowned. The station hadn't taken the damage necessary for that kind of explosion unless it was a self-inflicted explosion. That's when it dawned on him what they were doing.

"Clever, very clever," he mumbled before turning to the Gunnery Chief, "Watch for debris. Blow it up before it connects with the ship."

The man hesitated due to the enormity of his task, but discipline quickly silenced his objections before he could voice them.

"Yes sir," he replied instead.

Satisfied, Thrawn turned to the Captain, "Bring the ship to a code 3 lockdown and detail regular, full depth security sweeps. Advise that all other ships follow suit."

"Sir? How could they possibly-"

"Ask that to the defense fleet," Thrawn interrupted.

The Captain fell silent as he cast a backward glance at the chaos.

"Yes sir," he finally answered half-heartedly.

"Sir, the cruisers are entering weapons range," called an officer.

"Very well. Weapons free. Order them to attack from the the inside and drive them apart. Order bombers to commence a structural attack on those unshielded destroyers," Thrawn ordered.

"Yes sir," the Captain answered crisply.

As if on cue, the space between the two sides erupted in green laser fire. The first warship barely survived the initial salvo from the lead cruisers. It's entire portside was torn apart as a cascade of fire traveled down it's length from front to back. At the same time a squad of bombers flew through the dwindling flack as they traced a line of carefully placed explosions down the center. As the thrusters cleared the stern of the cruiser, the crippled Victory-Class Star Destroyer gave one last explosive shudder before the reactor went critical. Within seconds, the ship was engulfed in a red and orange blanket as chunks of durasteel spiraled out into the nearby space. The hard vacuum of space quickly put out the fire, leaving a ghostly nest of flood infested debris, that the cruiser quickly and deftly ducked down and away from.

Thrawn watched the battle intently as his own ships began to enter firing range. The ship gave a noticeable shudder as the nearest Imperial warship opened up with what was left of it's lasers. However, despite the small earthquake, the massive dreadnaught shrugged off the attack as it returned the favor with a few of the forward medium guns. At the same time, Thrawn watched as it rapidly closed the distance. It was moving in a nearly parallel trajectory, but going the opposite direction. Mentally, Thrawn mapped it's course. The ship was trying to run against their portside. The move would all but destroy their ship at the angle and speed it was coming in at, but it didn't matter. It would surely transfer Flood forms, and he couldn't allow that.

"Come about five degrees starboard. All portside batteries focus fire on the reactor core. Have the Credence fire on her starboard stabilizers. Alert all decks of possible portside intrusion," Admiral Thrawn ordered.

There was a noticeable shift in the laser fire as the ship traded targets. Thrawn wasn't surprised that the reactor failed to rupture at first. That just simply meant that this ship had taken most of it's damage from boarding action, not space combat. However, explosions started to blossom on the ship as the heavy batteries chipped away at the localized shields. From its angle above and to the portside, the Credence was having much better luck as the main shield failed. This entire time, Thrawn felt the ship shake every now and then as the shields absorbed the resulting onslaught of lasers. Soon explosions ripped apart the space where the stabilizers use to be. The results were instantaneous as the ship leaned hard to that side in a slow motion barrel roll. The nose soon dipped as the bow stabilizer was destroyed.

Kilometer by kilometer the fleet forced it's way through the flood infested ships. As ships exploded or were disabled, the point defense crews found themselves busy destroying stray chunks of debris that got too close. Thrawn was still very outnumbered and quickly became glad that the Flood seemed barely able to steer their ships, let alone coordinate an organized defense. However, despite their attempts to stay separated, Thrawn started hearing reports of Flood forms on some of his ships. It wasn't confirmed at first. A few security teams had failed to report in on the Credence and the Black Night. However, within five minutes he had confirmation.

"We have found forms on decks three and five. They slipped in through a minor hull breach. Stormtroopers are engaged with them now, and we're doing a sensor sweep of the ventilation system as you suggested," reported a Vice Admiral aboard the Credence.

"Understood. Adjust your course and tell the second and third battle groups to execute phase two," Admiral Thrawn ordered.

"Yes sir," the Admiral replied before closing the channel.

The fleet had stayed tight together as it dove into the fray. Now, Thrawn watched as another Executor, Six Imperial-Class, and five cruisers pulled off to the starboard and portside. The goal was simple. He would pierce into the middle of the mess, and then push out to expand the whole. Assuming that she hurried, Director Isard and the rest of the transports would have a straight shot out of the system with little to no resistance. Thrawn knew the maneuver would be costly, and he wouldn't dream of using it against any rational thinking opponent, but the Flood were nothing but glorified animals and it showed in their battle tactics.

As if to highlight his point, one of the deck officer's called out, "We just lost the Spirit of Droll."

Thrawn consulted the tactical board and then the right, forward viewport. Sure enough, a Victory-Class Star Destroyer was crumbling in a mess of fire and metal as another of Thrawn's ships tried to chase away the offender.

"Is there pods?" he asked.

"Yes sir. I have four- no three pods off the starboard side. Headings are 2201.56, 2204.73, and 2206.81," the man answered.

Thrawn watched in silence as an Imperial-Class Warship of his took a new position above and slightly in front of the offending Executor. At the same time, a cruiser picked up the pods with its tractor beams. A blue beam light quickly lit up a spot right above where the reactor was. Seconds later that same beam or light energized. The resulting explosion left a thin smile on Thrawn's face. In an instant, the beam had pierced the shields, cut through at least eight decks, set off a secondary explosion when it cut through a reserve ammo dump, and destabilized the reactor. The Imperial-Class Destroyer broke away fast enough to avoid the worst of the explosion, but only time would tell if they got away from the Flood forms.

"Very well. It looks like Captain Torrla has them handled," he finally answered.

"Captain, we have major seismic activity in the government district," called the Lieutenant in charge of the ship's sensors.

''IFF tags are lighting up on the surface," interjected another officer.

The seismic activity caught Thrawn's attention. However, the Captain could give him the details. Right now, he needed to confirm the location of those ships.

"Put it on the tactical board," he ordered.

"Yes sir," the man replied crisply.

Almost immediately he was rewarded with several dots all over the government district. However, a quick glance at the numbers told Thrawn that they were in the air but low enough still to confuse any targeting computers.

"There's an incoming transmission from Isard, sir," the Captain reported as he walked over to the holotable.

Thrawn simply nodded as he turned to the table and opened the channel. The Director appeared, accept this time she looked every bit as stressed and tired as everyone else that Thrawn had talked to. Contrary to her facade of confidence and fearlessness, her eyes screamed fear and exhaustion. Her normally perfect hair was messed up, and her blood stained uniform was wrinkled and twisted slightly. He wouldn't say it, but there was apart of Thrawn that enjoyed seeing her so stressed and fearful.

 _It's about time you knew fear,_ he thought.

"ISB sent a message. Don't bother putting down troops. They just finished transferring all of the civilians and personnel that they could to my ships. The planet's lost," she reported.

Thrawn didn't reply for a second as he studied her for any signs of deception or ulterior motive. He didn't want to become another unfortunate statistic in the Director's rise to power. Seeing none, he nodded his head and turned to his Captain.

"Detail the remaining Victories to help re enforce our flanks. We're aborting our landing as per the Director of Intelligence's orders," he ordered.

All holotable conversations and those of the people nearby were being recorded, and Thrawn knew. As such he made sure to use it to cover him and his crew in case she tried to pin any failures on him.

"Yes sir," replied the Captain.

"Oh and Captain," he called as he motioned the man back over, "What's going on in the Government District?"

''Well… uh… It appears that there's an Executor-Class warship that was stored underground. It's coming up now," the Captain hesitantly answered.

The weight of both Thrawn's and Isard's stares made him very uncomfortable. The man nearly sighed in relief when Thrawn simply nodded and sent him back to his duties.

"I have a lane opening up. Start bringing your ships up in a tight formation. On my signal, run full burn for the moon. Then make your jump," he stated.

Thrawn watched as Isard clenched her jaw. Technically she was in charge here. However, she had no choice but to listen and do what a subordinate told her to do. It was starting to grate on her. Putting that aside, she simply acknowledged and signed off.

Thrawn turned from the holotable just in time to watch one of his Imperial-Class warships get rammed by a wave of shuttles and fighters. Right behind it was a larger diplomatic ship.

"Fire on that diplomatic ship," Thrawn ordered his Captain.

"Yes sir," he replied before relaying the orders

However, only a few of the guns turned. The rest cast a deadly obstacle course of flack in front of the ship. It took to Thrawn a second, but he soon saw the reason. Several shuttles and fighters were running straight at the ship's upper hull. At the same time, he watched as the Flood warships converged on the fleet again. Thrawn's eyes narrowed. Something was wrong but he couldn't- suddenly his ship shook violently as lasers from a half dozen warships slammed into the portside. At the same time, four of the shuttles and three fighters crashed into the hull towards the bow. That's when it all made sense.

"They're getting smarter," he mumbled.

"Divert all portside batteries to those ships," the Captain ordered the Gunnery Chief.

"Belay that order. Set topside medium and light batteries for flack. The Flood won't scrap the ship. The need the bodies. Only target them with the heavy turbolasers. Transfer ten percent of the engine power into the portside shields," he ordered, "Send troopers to the impact sites and get zero-g troopers topside to secure other entries."

"Sir, in the middle of a battle, the fatalities among the zero-g troopers-"

"Won't be as serious as an interior battle. Do it," Thrawn interrupted.

Seeing no room for argument, the Captain carried out his orders. There was a noticeable shift in the engine power as their power was lowered.

* * *

Lieutenant Gomauk did one last check his seals as the inner door to the airlock sealed. All around him, his company was doing the same. There was a buzz as the light went from red… then to yellow… then to green.

Immediately, the outer door hissed open. The rush of escaping air would've taken him off his feet if it weren't for his magnetic boots. All around him, the sights of battle painted a colorful display of death and destruction. High intensity lasers streaked by and explosions rocked the ship beneath him. From his unobstructed view, he watched as ships were crippled and destroyed. The hard vacuum of space added an unnerving silence to the picture. Even his life support system was barely audible hum in his ears.

"Spread out and move for the first crash sight," he ordered as he half leaped and half walked forward.

Moving with speed in a zero gravity environment was a fine art where every variable had to be considered and every step was a leap of faith. While everything was encased in a hard plasteel casing, one damaged wire or one bad move could send him tumbling into oblivion. Using their jet packs to boost their speed and keep control, the company of grey, armored troopers converged on the attack sites. A look visually and with his heads up display, showed four other companies converging. Even with the new, lighter gear, this many troops would normally be overkill. Everyone of the troopers stood two meters tall when fully geared up, had an second armored suit over their standard stormtrooper armor, and carried a standard E-11 blaster, a heavy blaster with a grenade launcher attached underneath, multiple thermal detonators, and laser cutter powerful enough to cut through the Conviction's outer armor while still shielded. However, this enemy had proven itself quite capable, even if clumsy in combat.

"Hold it, I've got multiple contacts ahead," called one of his sergeants.

"Roger. Check your fields of fire, and weapons free on hostiles," Gomauk ordered.

With silent precision, the soldiers adjusted their spacing and advanced into a service trench. The lack of an enemy made Gomauk nervous and with a couple rapid blinks, he switched passed night vision and straight to thermal. He was glad he did.

"All stop," he barked, as he froze mid step, "All teams switch to thermal and check around you. Things just got very dicey."

They were two inches from triggering a trap. He slowly turned around in a circle as he stared in awe at the heat signatures all around him. Without the last minute check he would've totally missed them. There was a series of quick gasps over the comm. This was going to be ugly.

"On my mark. All teams deploy jetpacks. They can't fly but we can. We'll use that," he explained.

As if sensing a problem mounting, the Flood picked that moment to swarm on them despite the less the ideal situation. Because of this, his men had time to move.

"Go! Go! Go!" he called.

All at once, the company of troopers shot up into the space as they began pouring lasers into the attackers. All across the upper hull the same scene was playing out in small groups. Gomauk watched as the Flood forms rushed into the now empty trench. Taking advantage of their height above the hull, the troopers drowned the green monsters in lasers and grenades.

* * *

"Sir, Director Isard's ships are getting ready to clear the atmosphere," Thrawn's Captain reported.

"Good. Bring us around 180 degrees portside, and focus available batteries on the bow stabilizer of that destroyer," he ordered as he indicated a destroyer that was making a suicide run into the center of the "lane" that Thrawn had clear.

"Yes sir," the Captain acknowledged before passing on the order.

"What's the status of our boarders?" Thrawn asked after the Captain was done.

Before responding, the Captain pulled up a 3-D map of the ship.

"The zero-g troopers have engaged Flood forms just outside the containment zone and are slowly driving them back. Stormtroopers inside have engaged them behind blast doors on decks six and seven toward the bow. That fight is grinding away, but the stormtroopers have managed to keep them out of the forward armory through liberal usage of heavy ordnance and incendiary weapons. It'll take a few days to repair the damage but it's mostly superficial and the tactics are effective. The Commander in charge is trying to force them into the airlocks. From there he can simply eject them into space. The ventilation system is under lockdown pending an all clear signal, and all crew has been evacuated from the areas that you ordered. We have the Flood almost completely quarantined," the Captain replied.

Thrawn nodded. It wasn't good news, but it was better than he could hope for.

"Good. Keep me updated," he ordered.

"Yes sir."

* * *

Lieutenant Gomauk ejected the shell from his grenade launcher, as he watched several small infection forms incinerate beneath him. After jamming in another shell, he switched modes, adjusted his angle to flank a squad of combat forms, and opened up with a salvo of lasers. The first one died as several lasers cut through it's body. The force of the impacts was not only strong enough to break it's hold on the deck, but also send it flying off into the cold soundless vacuum of space. The next spun around, but compromised its hold and was shot off by a glancing hit to the chest. From there it was an easy kill for two overly eager privates who blasted it to pieces. The next three had enough warning to turn their weapons on Gomauk. He kicked off his jetpack in favor of his magnetic boots just as the lasers streaked over his left and right shoulders respectively. However, he never got the chance to attack, as he was instantly attacked by a group of ten infection forms. A quick backward pulse from his jetpack got him away from all accept one that grabbed onto the bottom of his boot. That one was only alive until his magnetic boots reactivated and he crushed it to a pulp. Using the extra room, he quickly shot the forms and pushed forward and back to in the direction of his squad. At the same time, he saw, more than felt, the Conviction turn hard to the portside as it's heavy turbolasers rotated to meet their new target.

Slowly, but surely, the troopers pushed the flood forms back. With no organic surroundings, and very stubborn enemies, the Flood forms soon found themselves starving for numbers as the troopers pressed their counter attack. However, that isn't to say there wasn't casualties. Gomauk was forced to shoot at least three of his men after they were taken over by infection forms. As they advanced, Gomauk noted with some satisfaction that they had managed to keep the Flood away from the airlocks outside the quarantine circle.

As he jetted to cover, Gomauk looked in awe as a massive Executor-Class Warship stormed passed the Conviction with it's turbolasers blazing. It was promptly followed by several smallers frigates and transports.

"Gentlemen, I think our tour of Coruscant is coming to an end. Let's finish this so we can go home," Lieutenant Gomauk stated.

Apparently invigorated by his words, the soldiers launched into one last vicious offensive. Troopers clashed with Flood forms in a violent display of color and carnage. Bodies of both Imperial soldiers and combat forms were sent tumbling into the harsh vacuum of space, troopers were consumed and taken over by infection forms, while those same forms were blown to pieces by grenades and lasers.

* * *

Thrawn watched as the Conviction picked up a rear guard position behind the escaping ships. Off each flank, three Victory-Class and six Imperial-Class Star Destroyers took up station as they hammered in on the advancing Flood ships. Thrawn watched with a measure of sadness as the Black Night succumbed to it's attackers. Seeing the end, the Captain fell far out of formation and triggered the scuttling charges.

From the reports Thrawn could get, it appeared that at least ten of his ships were near that point, including his other Executor-Class ship. Aside from the Conviction, the only one with borders that seemed to be winning the fight, was the Credence. However, it was important to note, that they had caught that one very early and at the very front of the ship. The rest of the operation seemed to drag into eternity as Thrawn watched the rear guard fall apart.

"Order the evacuation ships to fall back, we'll break through," he ordered.

"Yes sir," replied the Captain, before relaying the order.

As the man finished, Thrawn watched as another officer called for his attention. They held a brief, hushed conversation before the Captain passed the info to the info.

"Commander Rontell reported in. They've pushed the Flood forms back to the crash sites. Two of the four companies are making entry to help security inside. The rest are doing a final sweep," The Captain reported.

"Good. Tell them to proceed," the Admiral answered as he watched his ships race over top of Isard's ships.

The Captain acknowledged the order before relaying it, and giving the necessary target orders. Normally Thrawn wouldn't like brute force attacks like this, but he didn't have an option. So, he was content with his Captain's orders and watched as every battery turned on the nearest warship. All of his other ships did the same with their respective targets as the smashed their way free of the fleet's grasp.

* * *

While things were coming to an end in space, the fight for the ship wasn't over yet. Lieutenant Gomauk ducked behind a crate as lasers streaked over his head. As he ducked, he thumbed the activation switch for his grenade launcher. Then, in one fluid motion, he leaned out, and pointed the barrel forward and up, before squeezing the trigger. A streak of purple light launched into the center of the Flood attackers before exploding. The blast atomized the smaller forms while blowing the combat and carrier forms to pieces.

Seeing a hole, Gomauk motioned his men forward.

"Move it up," he barked.

As his men left their positions, he took the lead as he shot a group of infection forms.

Through the noise and commotion, Lieutenant Gomauk failed to notice the two squads a stormtroopers enter the passage from behind. He only found out when they reported in over the comm. Under cover of a laser wall, the stormtroopers continued down the passage, leaving dead, mutilated Flood forms in their wake.

"Grenade, out!," called one of the troopers as he pitched a thermal detonator down the passage.

Even with sound dampeners, the tight space amplified the already deafening blast as a fiery shockwave shot out in every direction. Everyone was far enough away that they weren't hurt, but Gomauk still flinched as he felt the heat wash over him. This cleared a large gap in the Flood lines. From there, the rest of the Flood were cleared from the passage. For the next five hours, this scene repeated itself all over the bow of the ship as the stormtroopers fought fanatically to retake their ship.

* * *

"Clear the room," Thrawn ordered as he walked through the blast door that separated the holotable and tactical board from the rest of the bridge.

Immediately and without question, every security officer and crew member left their stations and exited through the blast door, which immediately sealed behind them. After a brief visual check to ensure that he was alone, Thrawn activated the holotable and kneeled down on one knee. After a second, a larger than life hologram of the Emperor suddenly appeared.

"My lord. To what do I owe this honor?" Thrawn asked in flat tone.

While he respected the Emperor, he wasn't about to hide his annoyance at the man's micromanagement of his operation.

"Admiral Thrawn. I sense trenchery in our midst," he said with a low growl.

This caused the Admiral to arch an eyebrow. Nothing was more deadly than being caught, or even suspected of committing treason.

"Surely you understand that I and my fleet have-" he started before being interrupted.

"Not you. I foresee embers of treason forming in the Nagthori. Their loyalty to Lord Vader has made them a liability and that is something that I will not allow," he answered.

While it made sense on some level, Thrawn was still confused and becoming slightly worried. He had a Nagthori bodyguard, and while he didn't doubt the Commando's loyalty, he still held no question that his first love was his people.

"What exactly do you have planned for them?" Thrawn asked as he rose slowly, but gracefully.

"I intend to end the threat. Bring all of the Commando's under your command to Byss. I will deal with them and all of the other deployed teams at once," the Emperor ordered.

"With all due respect, that's a lot of Spec Ops troops to deal with," Thrawn objected.

He couldn't possibly figure out what Sidious planned to due. If he had wanted to kill them, he would've just given an order. However, their transfer to Byss either meant that he wanted to do it personally or there was an even worse fate waiting for them.

"I am aware of that," the Emperor snarled.

Despite being a non-force sensitive, Thrawn could've sworn that he felt the room cool by several degrees.

"I simply intend to ensure their loyalty. That is all," the Emperor finally finished in a much more civil tone.

The way that the Emperor's mood was swinging so violently wasn't necessarily new, but the level and speed of the change was rapidly getting worse.

"Yes my lord. I will see that it is done," Thrawn replied with a nod of the head.

"Good," Sidious acknowledged before closing the channel.

 **(Alliance base: Four hours earlier)**

Vader's lightsaber crackled as he parried a diagonal attack from Luke. Frustrated, Luke tried to feign an attack at the side, before turning it into an angled stab at the end. Vader, simply stepped back out of the way and batted the blade well away from himself. As he and Luke spared, he tried to avoid shaking his head. Luke was getting frustrated, which should've driven him to more aggressive action. However, it wasn't. He was slow and deliberate- or at least trying to. As the match wore on, Vader noted very distinct similarities between Obi Wan's and Luke's fighting styles. He had noted them at Bespin, but he now had a chance to focus on it. Luke prefered to retreat and draw his opponent in with attacks limited to defense until he thought he had an opportunity. Then he threw everything he dared to into an attack until it was clear that he wasn't getting anywhere. At that point the process began again. It was the exact same process that had nearly killed Vader on Mustafar, and allowed Luke to hold out as long as he did. Despite being there longer, Obi Wan's retreat had given him enough time to scope where he wanted to attack at, and Vader's raw aggression had drawn him right into the traps. However, unlike Luke, Obi Wan's prefered fighting style played into that tactic. Luke's more aggressive nature didn't and it was showing in sloppy moves and Luke's painfully obvious attempts to hold back.

At this point Vader was simply toying with him- never going on the offensive, but instead simply doing the minimum of what was required block his attacks. Vader knew this. Luke knew this, and it was aggravating him. At that point, his frustration and determination got the best of him. Vader raised an eyebrow as Luke came at him from every angle. It got to the point that Vader couldn't even tell what lightsaber techniques he was using. However, he was also sloppy, and Vade decided it was time to get to the lesson. He lept out of the way of an attempted stab at his chest, grabbed Luke's now hyperextended arm, and slammed his right knee into Luke's side right below the ribs. While the blow was more startling that actually painful, Luke lost his balance and went stumbling to the ground.

With a groan Luke quickly went to pick himself up, only to find himself staring at the end of Vader's lightsaber blade.

"Were this an actual fight, you would've died a long time ago," Vader explained in the stern tone a teacher might use with a troublesome student, "You have the capability and actually gave me a challenge at the end. However, you're sloppy, and holding back. Why?"

Luke nodded as he started to answer "I can't seem to keep ahold of myself. It's like there are two sides of me fighting over how to fight-"

"There's the raging monster that drives the aggressive action, and the cool rationality that keeps you grounded and their fighting over the central control board. Right?" Vader finished.

"Ya," Luke answered as he gave Vader a curious look.

It was as much due to the answer as it was due to the now retracted blade. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as Luke stood up. He went to grab his lightsaber, but stopped short as Vader used the force to grab it instead. By this point Vader's features had taken a softer tone as he stepped back. It was clear he had something to say, so Luke simply stood and waited.

"Did the doctor's give you a list of my injuries?" Vader asked.

"Yes… They were extensive to say the least," Luke replied slowly and with a shudder.

"It didn't start that way," Vader said, "It started on Naboo three years prior. I was on a mission, protecting a high profile senator. During the mission, I had premonitions of my mother dying. I didn't why or how, just that she was dying. With the senator's support, I traveled back to Tatooine. After some looking, I found out that she had been freed, married, and that she and her husband were temporarily living with the Lars. From there I found out that she had been taken by Tusken Raiders. I tracked them back to their village just in time for my mother to die in my arms. In my rage I wiped out the entire village. Every man, woman, and child died that night. I returned to the house the next day determined not to let those around me die again, and buried my mother."

By this point Luke was hanging on every word. This explained the marker at the house that his uncle was insistent that he didn't touch but also refused to talk about.

After a brief pause Vader continued, "Three days later, that same blind rage would cost me my right hand" -he pulled up the right sleeve of his coat to show his robotic hand- "at the hand of Count Dooku, Sidious's apprentice at the time."

"So what does this have to do with holding-?"

"Shut up and listen," Vader barked, "That same fight, Obi Wan almost died for the opposite reason. In an effort to keep control, he held back to much. Count Dooku cut him just right in the arm and leg, that he couldn't use either one. Over the course of the war, I learned how to bury my anger, and then turn it to my advantage in combat. He learned how to be reserved but effective. Three years after that fight, we met each other on Mustafar. I was drunk on power and convinced that I could easily overpower him. To a point I did, but he learned something over those years. He let his passion drive him, while using his connection to the light to keep himself grounded. You see, Jedi have always been at a disadvantage because they hold back, even when they don't think they are. However, Sith let their anger control them, and it is becomes their undoing."

Luke simply looked at Vader like he had a third head.

"In other words…"

"Why do you fight?" Vader asked.

"I fight because this is what I believe in," Luke replied.

"No. Specifically. Why do you fight? What brought you to this point?" Vader pressed as he tossed Luke his lightsaber.

"Because the Empire took everything I had," Luke replied as he activated his lightsaber.

In response, Vader activated his lightsaber and lunged forward.

"Then use it," he ordered as he delivered his first blow.

Luke's eyes widened as he reeled from the force of the impact on his blade. Shaking it off, he steadied himself as he prepared for the next series. However, what followed was a series of half hearted attempts that were designed to test his defenses. Before, Vader could fall into a fully defensive stance, Luke attacked. First was a series of rapid blows to the outside before attempting to go for center mass. Vader deflected each one with ease.

"What did the Empire take?" Vader quizzed as he leapt backward over a stack of crates.

Luke didn't answer as he took the high ground on the crates, but Vader could feel his closely guarded anger bubble below the surface. It wasn't anything alarming but it added fuel to Luke's attacks. Vader upped his quality of fighting to match.

"Did they take your home?" Vader pressed as Luke jumped over and behind him.

There was more anger, controlled but increasing. The ferocity of the attacks increased. However, so did the sloppiness of them.

"Do not let your anger control you. Focus," he coached as he came within inches of taking his son's head off.

Taking the startling message the wrong way, Luke backed down, as his lightsaber movements became slower and more cautious. After a few seconds of this, Vader used the force to send him tumbling back.

"I said focus. I did not say back down. If you choose to do that, then you die," Vader snapped.

Luke's response was drowned out in a yell of pain as Vader delivered a quick blast of force lightning. In the resulting spasmodic jerk, he lost his lightsaber. Stunned, he fumbled for his lightsaber. However before he could get it, he was forced to leap out of the way of Vader's swinging blade.

Vader could tell that Luke was startled by the aggressiveness.

"The first lesson of combat is to fight through the pain. The second lesson is to fix the mistakes that caused the pain," Vader stated as he bisected the crate under Luke's feet.

Luke did a backward flip off the destroyed crate. As brought his head up, he crouched as he looked to confirm the location of his lightsaber and judge Vader's move. He saw Vader's blade go back for a right-to-left strike. However, the surge of force into Vader's hands and arms warned of a trick. Luke rolled to the left just as a powerful force blast ripped through the area he had just been in.

"Impressive," Vader noted flatly.

Luke didn't pause to see if he was serious, but instead reached out to his lightsaber through the force. At this point, Vader turned and advanced toward him. Luke knew the danger, but hoped he could call it before Vader's blade came within striking distance. However, as much as he tried to, he couldn't get the blade to do more than wiggle.

Much to Luke's surprise, Vader stopped just outside striking distance and seemed content to swing his blade just inside Luke's peripheral vision. It wasn't a direct threat but it was a good distraction. That's when it all connected for Luke. He willed himself to pull his focus from the swinging blade, his pain, and even his general surroundings and instead focused completely on his lightsaber. With a surprising amount of force, the lightsaber flew into his outstretched hand. As he did this, Vader closed the distance between them. As Vader brought his blade across at neck level, Luke ducked under the crimson blade, activated his own green blade, and brought it up in a strike aimed for right between the shoulders. While it looked effortless as Vader used the force to propel himself out of the way, Luke could feel a measured amount of surprise radiate off him. Luke noticed a thin smile on Vader's face as he turned around. Luke readied himself for Vader's next move, but instead Vader deactivated his blade and clipped it to his belt. A reassuring ripple through the force told Luke the match was over and he followed suit.

As his heart rate slowed down, Luke felt another presence in the room. Looking up to a second level catwalk, he noticed the Arbiter watching intently.

"Your final lesson. Know how many people are in the room and where they are at, at all times," Vader said firmly as he pointed to the towering Elite, "He could've easily killed you from there had he wanted to."

Luke nodded as he stared at the Arbiter.

"How long has he been there?" Luke finally asked.

"About half of the round," Vader replied as he walked toward the exit.

Within a minute of Vader leaving, the Arbiter was also gone, leaving Luke alone with his thoughts.

On his way to his shuttle, Vader was approached by the Arbiter.

"The boy has potential," he commented as he fell in step.

"He does," Vader agreed, "But we don't have the time."

"Is that why you are pushing so hard," the Arbiter quizzed.

If he hadn't known better, he would've thought that Vader had actually been trying to kill him toward the end.

"Yes, and for the record, I'm being nice," Vader answered.

The Elite simply nodded as they walked down the passage.

"That isn't why you were there, though," Vader finally observed.

"Your decision to take the Chimerea away from our operation has many people nervous," he stated firmly.

"As has my request to reassign Luke," Vader noted before explaining, "There is a people called the Nagthori that swore a life-debt to me, and by extension, the Empire and Sidious. As a result, they have served as elite commando squads inside the military for years. However, their loyalty to me, makes them a liability for the Emperor, and he doesn't take kindly to those. The Chimerea won't have time to remove everyone, but the population is small enough that the Chimerea can remove the majority of them. I chose Pelleon because he has been commanding warships since before Admiral Piett was born. Luke's relation to me will add validity to his warning."

"I see. What keeps them from trying to strike a deal with the Empire in return for survival?" the Arbiter quizzed.

"They won't have a chance, and I think you'll find the cultural similarities between the Elites and the Nagthori quite striking," Vader answered, "When they learn the extent of the Empire's deception, they will make a loyal and vital addition to our army."

"Very well then. I will relay your explanation to Command," The Arbiter concluded before splitting off at the next intersection.

The rest of the walk to his shuttle was done in silence, as was the flight to the Executor. While the base had an operating communications room, Vader's next meeting was a little too clandestine in nature- even by a rebellion's standards. Upon entering his chambers and disabling any listening devices, he dialed the frequency code into the long range holoprojector.

After what felt like forever, Vader was greeted by a black hooded figure. A close look revealed the distinct red and black patterns that were attributed to the Zabrak species.

"So the Apprentice betrays the master. I must say that you have an unorthodox way of doing it," the man observed.

There was just enough insanity in his voice to make Vader unsure, not that he showed it.

"I have provided my proof. In turn I want results," Vader demanded.

"And what makes you think I want to give them?" the man asked, "You are the successor to all Sidious has built. By killing him, you simply carry on the tradition. I have nothing to gain from this."

Despite the hood, Vader could make out the fire in the Zabrak eyes.

"I am not carrying on the line. I am destroying it. When I finish, the Sith will be nothing but a faded memory," Vader answered confidently.

"Now that… at least assuming that you tell the truth… is a cause I could get behind. Tell me, why should I trust you?" the man asked as his tone grew colder and more suspicious.

"I have nothing to gain by your death. I have other things to deal with, and having the Inquisitors breathing down my neck would be more than a little inconvenient," Vader replied.

There was a tense moment of silence as the man seemed to consider Vader's words.

"Very well. Send me the list," he replied before sharpening his tone, "But if you double cross me, I'll show you hell in the likes you have never seen."

"Don't worry. I haven't forgotten what you did to the Jedi," Vader assured him with a glare before adding as an afterthought, "and I'm sure no one has forgotten what you did to Mandalore."

At the same time he inserted a data card and was about speak, but the Zabrak beat him to it.

"First, I could only dream of doing what my brother did to them. Second, Mandalore was fun while it lasted," the man replied with a maniacal grin before adding, "I have it. I'll be in touch."

Without another word, the man's hologram winked out of existence as the connection was severed. As if on cue, Vader's personal commlink chimed. Upon clicking it on, he was rewarded with an image of Admiral Piett.

"My Lord. We have a final plan ready for your review," Piett reported crisply.

"Good. I will be down shortly," Vader replied as he moved for the exit.

"Yes, My Lord," the man replied with his characteristic discipline before disconnecting the transmission.


	16. Chapter 16

**(UNSC Infinity: In route to the Maw)**

While the rest of the ship was preparing for the upcoming battle, Dr. Halsey was trapped in her lab studying the flow of information that was pouring in from the Executor. At the same time she was studying all of the available records from her own people. In this moment, she only had one concern. She did not care about the impending battle or even the war with the Empire. Her first and last interest was the Flood. She needed to find a way to destroy them. To help with this, she had asked Admiral Piett to provide any info that he had on Imperial bio-chemical weapons projects. If anything, she figured that it would be a helpful addition to UNSC knowledge. The resulting info was horrifyingly extensive. Admiral Piett had provided page after page of Imperial weapons briefs, and -most horrifying of all- the incident reports of failed and painfully successful tests.

As she was reading a Clone Wars era brief, the blast doors to the lab snapped open. She looked up from her data pad to see Admiral Hood entering the room. His face was drawn into its all too familiar look of exhausted determination.

"Are you finding anything useful," he asked.

"More than I'd like to admit," she answered grimly, "For an Empire with no real external threats, they have an extensive list of projects. Given the young age of the nation, many of these projects have complex and often times gruesum origin stories."

"Are any of them worth exploring?" he pressed.

"So far- "

Roland interrupted her reluctant answer, "Ma'am, I found one that might be interesting."

"What one?" she quizzed.

"Operation Blackwing," he replied.

Admiral Hood watched as the Doctor consulted her data pad. After a few agonizing moments of silence, a frown appeared.

"That's odd. Most projects that were shut down, had a report explaining why. This one just ceased. No word, no explanation, nothing," she finally stated, "Though if early results say anything, this may be a good stepping stone."

"How so?" the Admiral quizzed.

"Looking at its composition and early test results, this weapon has a near 100 percent mortality rate," Roland answered for her, "The virus has a relatively short incubation period. Symptoms set in within an hour. You're dead by the start of the next. While it was geared toward humans, it displayed the ability to rapidly evolve to any species the tested it on."

"That's great but what about the Flood. Aren't they some sort of biological 'anomaly'?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

"Yes, and I doubt a pure form of this weapon would kill them reliably. However, the fact that it attacks the central nervous system, on top of its rapid evolution makes it a good place to start," she answered as she continued to skim over the surprisingly small file.

Admiral Hood nodded in response as he formulated another question. Truth be told, he didn't know what to ask. The bridge had fallen silent as the trip wore on and being up there alone with his thoughts had been too much to bare. So he came down, hoping the doctor's nack for results had produced something that would put his mind at ease. Instead, he found the talk of Flood and bioweapons even more uncomfortable. However, she spared him the need to speak when she spoke instead.

"This is interesting. It appears that, unlike other projects, this was commissioned by Vader personally," she noted.

"Judging by your tone, he vaulted over a lot of red tape," Admiral Hood inferred.

"Yes," she answered, "and based on the lack of detailed information, I think a conversation with Vader is in order."

 **(Home One: enroute to the Maw)**

Mon Mothma couldn't believe what she was hearing from Admiral Piett. She knew the Imperial Navy had its dissidents, she just didn't realize it was this many or this high in the command structure.

"What about this Colonel Belcor? Admiral Thrawn spoke very highly of him, based on what we know," she quizzed.

"This holo-recording, if turned into ISB, would nail him on fifteen counts of treason. He has nothing to lose by joining us, and everything to lose by staying with the Imperials," Admiral Piett replied as he produced a data card, "The Tweleks used this to blackmail him into helping bring down the Perilous. Vader removed this from over his head before the Emperor could find out. Once free of it, Belcor repaid the favor. I'm sure you've noticed Cham Sindula's lack of off world operations."

Mothma raised her eyebrows, but accepted it with a nod. She remembered when the Free Ryloth Movement had been one of the Empire's greatest threats. After the attack on the Perilous, they had fallen off center stage. Piett's statement explained a lot.

"What about those Nagthori out of the Seventh Fleet. Can we expect any other surprise favors?" she asked.

"I don't know. Thrawn in an interesting character. No one really knows his political opinions. All they know, is that he owes his career to the Emperor," Piett replied with a thoughtful frown.

"I notice that a lot of these names are outer rim officers," Mothma observed.

"Yes. I served with some of them. Be warned, not many of the older officers will be supportive of a New Republic, though," Piet advised, "However, they don't like the Emperor either."

Mon Mothma went to say something else, but stopped as an officer appeared next to Admiral Piett on the holotable. At the same time Admiral Ackbar announced that they were preparing to exit hyperspace.

"Ma'am. It appears we are nearing the entry site. We'll discuss this on the other side. Piett out," he concluded.

Without another word, his figure winked out of existence.

* * *

Vader gave his new helmet a once over as he turned it around in his hands. Months of work and planning had gone into his current suit. It was the same as his old suit, but with a few differences. He had fitted the material to fit his real limbs, reworked the controls in his helmet so he could bypass the neural spikes, and added an oxygen recycling unit where the controls for his life support system use to be, and made a few other modifications. After a couple seconds, he snapped out of his contemplation. As he went to put the helmet on, he felt the oxygen leave his lungs. The familiar twinge of fear tried taking hold. Crushing it, Vader shoved on his helmet, and fought the urge to hyperventilate as he checked the seals. The memories that the mask contained were nothing new, but after months without it the darkness threatened to smother Vader.

Upon rebuilding his commanding demeanor, Vader marched out into the chaos of the ship. He moved down the hallway unimpeded as crewmembers and pilots gave him a wide berth and past backward glances of varying quantities of suspicion and fear. Ignoring them, Vader mentally rehearsed the plan in his head.

As he entered the hangar bay, he felt oddly at home as he watched crewmen and pilots do last minute prep on the fighters. Fuel lines were removed. Astromechs were lowered into place. Blaster packs and ordinance were loaded into place. Last minute repairs were finished. All in all, it was very familiar. Tracing the frontline of fighters, he found his fighter at the far end, and all alone. Not that Vader was surprised. He had made it clear that all the maintenance and ordnance loading had been done already, and anyone he caught near the ship would die. He made his way there, climbed in, and started the fighter. Within seconds of that, they exited hyperspace and given the clearance to deploy. His TIE Advanced was small compared to the larger X-Wings and Y-Wings that made up the bulk of the fighters nearby.

"All wings check in," Wedge ordered through comm.

As Vader listened to the pilots check in, he looked out at the fleet. Death Squadron was deployed in a v-shape in front and on the sides of the Alliance fleet. However, the dominating feature was the Executor, which hovered over everything like a protective blanket.

"This is Rouge Leader, standing by," Wedge announced when it came to his squad.

"This is Black leader, standing by," Vader stated after Rogue squadron had called in.

Ignoring the orders issued to the rebel fighters, Vader pulled his fighter into a steep climb and brought it up to where it was level with the Executor.

"Black Leader to Black Squadron. Mark my position and form up," he ordered.

* * *

Admiral Piett stared out at the empty space around them… well not totally empty. The faint glow of light could be seen from the event horizon of a black hole in front of them. A brief check of the scanners showed another one near by off the portside. Another visual look in front and off to the starboard showed another black hole.

After peeling his eyes off the viewport, he walked over to the tactical board. This was hard enough to get through with a small battle group. As a fleet it would be even harder. Looking at the location of his left flank, relative to the nearest black hole, he saw something he didn't like. He turned on his heel and walked over to the ship-to-ship comm station.

"This is Executor Control to Avenger. Tighten up. You are drifting too far out," he ordered.

"Yes sir. The gravitational pull of that black hole is making it difficult," the Captain explained with a trace of something.

Admiral Piett couldn't tell if it was annoyance, worry, or a mix of both.

"Understood," the Admiral concluded before closing the channel, casting another look at the tactical board, and opening all channels, "This is Admiral Piett to all ships. We are reaching waypoint one. Stand by for a 45 degree turn.- "he fell silent as the numbers ticked down- "and… Now. Full right, forty-five degrees."

The response was almost instantaneous as the bow of the Executor leaned to the right. Below them, the rest of the fleet made the same move. Due to the close proximity of one of the black holes, this move- as would be the case with the rest of the turns- was labored every one of the ships fought to counter the strong gravitational pull.

Soon the ship straightened up on a course that ran them precariously close to the black hole they had been dodging, and if held indefinitely, would take them into another black hole. Scientists had spent years trying to figure out how this many black holes in one area was possible. The general consensus, at least as far as Piett knew, was that it wasn't naturally possible. Using methods unknown, it is believed that the black holes were drawn here by some unknown race. Though, no scientist had enough hard evidence to officially make that claim, and the fact that the Navy had locked down the entire Maw dashed hopes of ever gaining the answer.

Aside from a few hushed conversations, the bridge fell silent as everyone focused on their tasks. The loudest noise in the room was the measured thump of Admiral Piett's boots against the durasteel floor as he paced from station to station. Any resemblance of worry had been wiped from the man's face as he visually dissected the monitors. Instead a picture perfect Sabacc face had taken hold. The only one on the bridge who could truly see the depth of his worry was his second in command, and it was only because they had been serving together for many years.

 **(ISD Gorgon: Kentara Station)**

Commander Kratas resisted the urge to jog across the bridge as he made his way to the Admiral.

"Ma'am. The picket line is reporting multiple warships incoming off point zero-five-eight," he reported once he was at an acceptable distance, though he hadn't stopped moving yet.

Admiral Daala snapped up from the datapad she had been reading.

"How many and what kind?" she quizzed.

"Thirteen Imperial-Class Star Destroyers, one Executor-Class Star Destroyer, and multiple Calamari-Class cruisers and Frigates," he stated.

Admiral Daala raised an eyebrow.

"How many Alliance ships, and where's the rest?" she quizzed.

She had read the briefings so many times she could recite it from memory. This was not the bulk of the fleet. Over forty warships were not accounted for.

"We don't know how many Calamari-Class ships. The close proximity of the black holes are making it difficult. We know how many Imperial Warships there are, because they are using Imperial IFF tags. The Alliance ships aren't using anything, so we can't get an accurate number," he replied.

She paused for a second to assess her options and then ordered, "Order the picket line to draw them in like planned. I want battle groups 3 and 4 to cut off their retreat. Bring the rest of the ships up to red alert and widen our spacing. Watch all sides for attack."

"Yes ma'am," he replied before turning around to carry out the orders.

The ship soon came alive with red flashing lights and klaxons as the off duty crew members and- at times- on duty crew members raced to their stations. An air of excitement set in. For most of the crew of the Gorgon, Admiral Daala included, this was their first real battle. The pressure was on.

* * *

Admiral Ackbar watched the battle unfold outside his view screen. He had little he needed to do, accept keep his fleet on course. Because of the Imperial Warships and everyone's fighters, the few small frigates they had run into were little more than an annoyance. His fleet was almost into "Zone 1" which was what the Imperials labeled the open space that Kentara station occupied. However, the opening was quite narrow for this kind of operation. Not that it mattered. The ships of Death Squadron simply shook off the enemy laser fire, as they met the picket line head on. Though, admittedly, it did help that the ships were falling back about as fast as the joint fleet was pushing forward.

"All ships, intensify rear shields," Admiral Piett's voice ordered over the comm.

Admiral Ackbar felt an inkling of fear as the order was given. Not very often did ship captains give that order… At least not unless something had gone wrong. However, the calm, unworried manner in which the order was given gave Ackbar reason to pause.

"Is something wrong?" he asked after issuing the order to divert shield power.

Much to Ackbar's surprise, it wasn't Piett who responded, but instead the cold, artificial voice of Vader.

"Within the next several minutes we will spring a trap. Be ready," Vader answered matter-of-factly.

Knowing he wouldn't get any other information, the Admiral closed the channel and set about redirecting his fighters and smaller, more maneuverable ships to cover the rear.

* * *

Admiral Daala couldn't see the enemy from out of the viewport, but the tactical board and battle map currently projected from the holoboard told her most of what she needed to know. Commander Kratas and the rest of the crew provided what little information and updates weren't displayed.

As she watched the battle play out on the holoboard, her brain raced. The visible ships were being outright suicidal. She recognized the sword and shield tactic from her studies at the Imperial Academy. It was designed to break planetary blockades, while delivering supplies at the same time. The larger warships would form a tight line around the front and sides of the smaller, weaker transports. Staying in this formation, they would attack the blockade. While the bigger warships would take the brunt of the assault, they would survive and the transports would arrive relatively unscathed. That was great for breaking a blockade. It was horrible for attacking a spread out fleet like hers currently was. This begged the question. What was their plan?

 **(UNSC Infinity: In slipspace)**

Admiral Hood entered the bridge to the sound of Captain Lasky issuing orders to the crew. Over his voice, the Admiral could hear hushed side conversations as the bridge crew charged the MAC's, raised shields, and did the other last minute work necessary enter a battle. He made it halfway to the holoboard before someone saw him.

"Commander on deck!" the crewman called.

"As you were," Admiral Hood ordered instantly.

Caught in an awkward moment between at ease and attention, there were some shuffled feet and quiet mumbles as the crew went back to work. By contrast, Captain Lasky barely broke stride as he walked over.

"Admiral Piett has already engaged the fleet," Captain Lasky explained as he pulled up a map of the battle on the holotable, "It appears that they triggered a trap. However, they had enough warning that part of the fleet was able to pull back, thus dividing Imperial resources."

Admiral Hood nodded as he mentally picked apart the map in front of him. One thing stood out.

"The spacing of her ships is quite familiar," he noted.

Captain Lasky flashed a knowing smile as he replied, "Yes sir. I thought the same thing."

"I was told the Imperials didn't get into our secure systems," Admiral Hood stated as his eyes narrowed.

"They didn't. However, this is an old tactic. The Arbiter and I are thinking that it may have been stored in their less secure archive systems," the Captain answered quickly.

"Old but effective," Admiral Hood replied as his eyes drifted up to the view port.

As if on cue, one of the navigation officers called out, "Sir. We are entering the attack area."

Captain Lasky looked at the Admiral, the Admiral nodded, and Lasky turned to the crew.

"Helm. Bring us out," he ordered.

The answer was a renewed flurry of activity and overlapping conversations as the safety of slipspace returned to the not-so-empty vacuum of realspace. A loud explosion echoed through the bridge as a small earthquake reverberated down the length of the massive ship. Outside the viewport, both officers watched as an Imperial-Class Star Destroyer was crushed by the suddenly impact of a three mile long battering ram.

As Captain Lasky was getting a damage report, the ship already began to shake under the onslaught of lasers from two other nearby Star Destroyers. Despite the appearance of the rest of the joint fleet, they refused to stop their attack.

"Target the portside destroyer with all four MACs. Arm the forward Rapier and Howler missile pods, and target the shield generator on the other destroyer," Admiral Hood ordered, before giving the rest of the orders for force deployment.

 **(ISD Gorgon)**

Admiral Daala slowly walked from station to station as she monitored the battle happening outside. From her distance, the massive firefight was nothing more than flashing specks of light at the edge of visible space. As she made her rounds, she could hear the isolated conversations of various crewmen as they executed their duties. Without warning, these conversations instantly grew in number and urgency. Hearing this, she immediately looked across the crew pit to her Commander.

"The rest of the fleet has arrived in system. It should be visible on tactical board," Commander Kratas replied to the unspoken question.

With a nod, she walked over to the board in question. She quickly noted the location of the dots and mentally counted how many there were. Satisfied that the whole fleet was there, she set her plan in motion.

"Order Vice Admiral Kochergen to take up a defensive position around Kentara Station. Stress the importance that the enemy fleet doesn't find our other installation. I want all other battle groups, including the Maw Fleet, to converge on the enemy ships. Focus all ship fire on the Dreadnaughts first. Have our fighters and boarding craft keep the rest busy," she ordered.

"Yes Ma'am," he replied crisply.

 **(CSO Shadow of Intent)**

The Arbiter felt the ship shudder as laser after laser battered the shields. Knowing his ship could handle the abuse, he kept his course. His goal was the battle group cutting off the entryway. On each side of the capital ship was two CCS-Class Battlecruisers- more than sufficient for the current task. He felt a measure of satisfaction as the first ship lost its shields. Within minutes of that, it was cut to flaming ribbons as plasma beams knifed through it. Then it was on to the next one.

* * *

Several kilometers off the portside of the Shadow of Intent, Vader was ducking in and out of laser fire. The forced called out a warning of danger well before the missile-lock alarms did. However, Vader did nothing to get out of the way. Instead, he reached out with the force. The same second it launched, Vader swung his fighter in a hard right turn while simultaneously forcing it downward. Using the force to hold the missile at bay, he strung it along for a few seconds. Up ahead loomed a massive Executor-Class Star Destroyer. Dropping in close to the flak guns, he stormed down its length. Up ahead was the, now unshielded, bridge. Subtle nudges of the steering yoke was all that kept him alive as lasers came within inches of the fighter. Slowly, he loosened his hold on the missile as he came up to the bridge. Finally, at the last second, he kicked his fighter hard left and up. At the same time, he used the force to keep the missile from following. Vader never heard or saw the explosion, but the sudden horror and loss of life in the force told him that the missile had found its target.

Vader went to report in, but paused as Wedge's voice called out, "This is Rogue Leader. We are tracking multiple shuttles closing in at point five-eight-one."

"Roger. We see them. Sending fighters to intercept," Captain Lasky acknowledged.

Bringing his fighter around further, Vader closed on his own intercept course.

"Black squadron. Mark my position and form up," he ordered.

On his scanners, Vader watched as TIE fighters formed up behind him.

"We're with you sir," reported one of the pilots.

Vader never responded as he picked out targets. Several Sentinel-Class shuttles and their TIE escorts were coming in head on.

"Focus on the assault craft. The fighters are not our concern," Vader ordered.

It was at that moment that the first lasers started zipping past him. Keeping his movements as small as possible, Vader ducked and weaved through the deadly light show. A quick bursts from his own cannons atomized one fighter, then another, and finally carved their way into the cockpit of shuttle. Looping back around, Vader went to line up a shot, but was spared the need as a UNSC fighter put two missiles straight through the wall of the deployment bay.

Off to Vaders right and up, Wedge cut his own path through the offenders. Working with another X-Wing, he ditched the TIE on his tail and lined up for a shot on an escorting TIE. Being in its blind spot, the pilot didn't see Wedge until it was too late. At the last second, the pilot jerked to the right to get out of Wedge's sights. However, it instead gave the rebel the perfect shot. Within seconds, several red lasers had perforated one wing and torn the pilot to pieces inside the cockpit. Crippled and missing a stabilizer, the fighter went spinning into oblivion.

* * *

The grey armored troopers all looked at each other with hidden expressions of curiosity and worry. Not two seconds earlier, they had been thrown into either their seats or harnesses as the ship made a sudden, hard turn to the right. Now their Sergeant was holding two fingers against the side of his head and nodding.

"Yes ma'am… Understood. Delta-1 out," the man spoke into his helmet before turning to his squad, "New orders. We're moving on the Rebel flagship - he produced a holo-image of the Home One- "Our orders are to breach and secure the main starboard hangar for the next wave."

The rest of the rough flight was spent with the squad going over last minute details and equipment checks.

"Sixty seconds to drop," called the pilot.

As if to highlight the point, a dim light clicked on, bathing the room in a ghostly red light. As one, the team stood up and with a precision born from multiple combat ops, checked over each other's armor. There was a series of sharp claps that traveled the length of the line as each person verified the readiness of the man in front. As the last person was cleared, the light went yellow. Everyone tensed. The light turned green and the ramp lowered into oblivion. Without so much as a look back, each man stepped off the edge of the ramp and onto the cold durasteel of the Home One's outer hull.

"You two get the hangar door open. The rest of us will cover you," the Sergeant ordered.

* * *

The klaxons mixed with the people sprinting down the hallway as rebel soldier all converged on the main, portside hanger. Crates were pulled together and stacked for cover. Turrets were erected and turned toward the door and snipers took positions on the upper catwalk. All of this was being done with one eye kept fixed on the glowing orange line that was being cut in the door.

To Ahsoka the fear was nearly suffocating. Everyone there expected to die. However, she also sense an undercurrent of determination. The Imperials would pay for this ship in blood. It may have been a different enemy, but all in all, this was the Clone Wars all over again.

"They're breaching!" yelled one of the soldiers as the orange square was completed.

At that moment everyone fell so quiet that the whine of the turrets turning was easily heard and the snap-hiss of Ahsoka's lightsabers activating was startling. Suddenly everything happened at once. With the help of explosive charges, the large door was sent skipping across the hanger. Before the door hit the deck, the Rebel troops started shooting. The space where the door used to be was flooded with superheated light as the Stormtroopers rushed the entryway.

Immediately, Ahsoka put herself in front of the rebel troops, deflecting shots that otherwise would be hitting them. However, she could not be everywhere at once, and soldiers began to die. One took as shot to the heart as he leaned out from behind a crate, and two more were killed in the blast from a thermal detonator. Despite this, the Imperial squads quickly identified her as the biggest threat. Soon she found herself forced into the offensive. It was either that or die. As she sprinted forward, Ahsoka launched herself high into the air before coming down between to troopers. She force blasted the first one against a nearby bulkhead, while stabbing the other through the heart. Without skipping a beat, she decapitated another trooper while deflecting shots from a couple others with her second blade. However, these were not battle droids. These were soldiers, and well trained ones at that- not clones but still good. As wave after wave of troopers poured through the opening, a familiar voice barked over the comm.

"We're being overrun. Pull back. We'll bog them down in the passages," Rex ordered.

Having not seen him enter, Ahsoka looked across the room and found him right in the middle of the fray, picking off Imperials about as fast as they appeared. In response, the Rebels slowly tightened formation as they backed toward the rear of the hangar. It took some work, but Ahsoka managed to remove herself from the mess of troopers she was caught in, and covered their retreat.

* * *

"Admiral Piett, tell Commander Appo to deploy for boarding. I want them on the Home One immediately. We can not lose that ship," Vader ordered as he fell in behind an Imperial shuttle.

A burst from his cannons blew the ship apart in a fiery explosion as the main fuel tank was hit.

"Yes sir. What about your mission. Will you require additional support?" the Admiral quizzed.

"No. The Admiral is mine," Vader answered before switching channels, "Black squadron, cover me. I am going for the Gorgon."

"We're with you, sir," answered a voice.

As if made to appear by force of words alone, five TIE fighters fell into formation behind him. This forced the defending sentry ships to split their attention and gave Vader the opening he needed. Landing in any of the hangers would've been nearly impossible from his location approaching the top of the Star Destroyer. However, unbeknown to the gunners, that was not his goal. Threading his way through fighters and deadly green lasers, Vader dropped in low to the main superstructure. Towering overhead was the massive command and control tower. As he approached, Vader kicked off the safety override on the ship's controls and depressurized the fighter's cabin. Ignoring the alarms from at least a half dozen of his ship's systems, he reached out with the force and grabbed onto where the Star Destroyer's bridge was at. Then he waited… waited… then ejected. With a blast of compressed gas, he launched out of the fighter. Using force as an invisible rope, he flew through the vacuum of space and up the tower- using Admiral Daala's force signature as a guide.

* * *

On the bridge of the Gorgon, the Admiral was too busy worrying about a rapidly deteriorating battle, to worry about a lone fighter crashing into the fully shielded ship. On top of that, no one had anyway of seeing the black, armor clad figure flying up their direction. That was until a loud screech tore through the bridge. Startled, she whipped around from the holotable just in time to see the time of a glowing red blade force its way through the center viewport. As the image from the port winked out with the destroyed camera's, the Admiral swore that she felt the bridge chill by several degrees. As the blade slowly melted a massive circular hole in the port, all people could do is look in horror. At least that's what most people did. In contrast Admiral Daala simply drew her service blaster, checked the charge, and attempted to return the color to her face.

She was doing fine until the sensors picked up a breach. Immediately the two huge durasteel covers on either end of the viewport sprung toward the center with a loud metallic Thud. Thud. Thud. They they stopped. Sparks flew and metal warped as they struggled against an invisible force. By this point the circle was halfway cut and the Admiral saw no way to stop it.

"Everyone off the bridge, and get security up here," she barked.

Without protest, crewmembers began exiting out of the rear blast door. Looking at their faces, it was clear several were resisting the urge to abandon discipline and run out in panic.

"What about you Ma'am?" Commander Kratas demanded upon seeing that the Admiral hadn't moved since giving the order.

"We're going to have a talk. Now go," she barked.

Seeing no room to argue, the Commander simply gave a salute and posted himself at the door in order to see that everyone got out. Most of the crewmen had been replaced by armed stormtroopers with magnetic boots, by the time the circle was completed. There was silence as the red blade removed itself from the multan hole that had been carved.

An awed silence turned into a tense dreadful silence as nothing happened. Only once the troopers started casting quizzical glances at each other did it happen. The massive block of durasteel was thrown inward, smashing in one trooper's head. Instantly, Daala felt herself pulled against the holoboard in front of her- something she had counted on. As she flew forward, she let the shoulder of her off hand take the brunt of the impact. A strong frontward wind tore at her hair and clothing as the oxygen in the room was replaced by cold, harsh nothingness. Fire exploded in the shoulder, as she made contact but she didn't care as she drew her blaster. Beyond the table, she could hear the rushing wind, and pained screams mixed with blaster shots.

Overcoming a sudden wash of fear, she forced herself up into a crouch and aimed the blaster right at Vader's pretty, black head. Squeezing the trigger, she heard the report as several red lasers streaked for his head. Yet they never made it. Taking them in stride, Vader deflected the shots as he used the force to smash a stormtrooper's head against a nearby control panel. Sparks flew and two troopers tried to use the distraction to their advantage.

Rising from cover, they joined the Admiral in flooding Vader with laser fire. As expected, each one was deflected. However, it did it's job in keeping his focus on them… or at least they thought. On the opposite side, another trooper drew a vibroblade and sprinted forward- counting on the vacuum to propel him even faster. Seeing him, Vader simply sidestepped as he blocked more shots, and used the force to alter the man's trajectory. A horrified scream was heard as the soldier was sucked into space. Then, without warning, Vader lunged forward and used his extended hand to block the Admiral's shots while using his blade to decapitate both remaining troopers.

There was still a good few feet between Vader and Daala, and she intended to make them count. However, before she could fire again, he felt her arm yanked forward. That yank turned into a forceful pull that threatened to pull her shoulder and out of socket as she was forced to surrender her blaster. Yet despite crushing the blaster with the force, Vader wasn't done. Instead, Admiral Daala felt an invisible hand grasp her throat, immediately cutting off oxygen. In a move that was as scary as it was painful, Vader pulled her out from behind the table she had been using for cover. The little oxygen she had left was forced out when her throat quite literally ran into his hand.

Clenching it in a physical grip just as powerful, Vader marched slowly toward the blast doors separating the holotable and tactical board from the rest of the bridge. Vader held his grip as he used the force to shut the blast doors in question. Immediately the wind ceased and the room repressurized. Upon locking the rear blast door, Vader finally saw it fit to let her go. Using the force to slightly augment the throw, he tossed her against the top of the holotable. From there, her forward momentum sent her crashing to the ground with a hollow thud. Despite gasping from a lack of oxygen and hurting from her new bruises Admiral Daala staggered to her feet, determined to look her enemy in the face.

Admiral Daala through she could hear a hint of genuine respect as Vader commanded, "Now Admiral, we have much to discuss."


	17. Chapter 17

**Hey everyone. Sorry I didn't get a note in with the last chapter. I was in a hurry. Anyway, I first want to thank the people who left suggestions of Imperials that could defect. It is greatly appreciated. I will definitely be looking into those.**

 **Second, I noticed that several of you pointed out a relatively major mistake in Chapter 7 where I had a whole brigade (a unit of about 20,000 men) get out of a Juggernaut tank. Thank you for pointing that out. It was suppose to be three Companies (which yes I know screws up a few other minor things in the chapter). Also I am well aware of how big three companies is. Those tanks can carry a stupid amount of people. However, it is cannotic. Therefore, I don't see why it wouldn't work. That said, please know that I saw it, but I can't fix it. I have passed the 90 day mark where the chapter is still in the doc manager, and I made some pretty major changes after I transferred it there from the Google Doc. So I am not willing to copy, paste, and resubmit it for fear of even bigger, plot related issues. Just consider the issue noted and I will be careful not to make it again.**

 **So with that said, I am posting this while recovering from being sick. (I was bored going out of my mind so I wrote this as I could.) Because of that, I am sorry about any spelling or grammar errors I missed when editing this. Also, it is shorter than usual.**

 **Now that we have that covered, without further ado, I give you chapter 17.**

* * *

"What is it you want?" Admiral Daala demanded as she scanned the room for a weapon.

"I wish for your fleet to stand down. From there, I want access to the Maw installations," Vader replied matter-of-factly as he inserted a data card into the holotable.

Admiral Daala snickered, "Why should I do that? My life isn't that important. There is more than enough of the command structure left to accommodate my death."

"I can fix that," Roland replied as he appeared on the holotable.

A flicker of surprise appeared on the Admiral's face before disappearing behind a mask of annoyance.

"Who are you?" she quizzed as her eyes narrowed.

"Someone who can end the lives of every crewmember in the Imperial fleet. Check the shields," Roland replied with a hint of pride.

Frowning, the Admiral walked over to control consol. Her eyes widened.

"That's… That's impossible. How did you do that?" she stammered as she looked at the shield strength.

The shields which had sat at ninety-nine percent had been reduced to zero. Knowing exactly how the system worked, the Admiral produced her code cylinder and stabbed it into the ESL (Emergency System Lockdown) terminal to her right.

Behind her, Roland frowned for a seconds before replacing a mask of smugness.

"Good, but not that good," Roland replied.

Admiral Daala was about to reply when she remembered something. She thought it over for a moment, then turned to Vader.

"Tell me. Do you think Leia is still alive?" she asked with a cruel smile.

Vader probed the force. She was alive, but there was trouble.

"Roland?"

"It appears that an Imperial battlegroup has singled out the Home One. They are trying to separate it from the rest of the fleet," Roland replied with a careful choice of words.

"And?" Vader pressed.

"Appo's on station but the ship is taking extensive damage. There appears to be another force user on the ship," Roland replied hesitantly.

Vader paused for a minute. He had two options and none of them were good. He could go for asset denial and destroy the ship. This would kill his daughter and several thousand people that they needed, or they could try to keep the ship with the fleet and expend resources that he really didn't have. It didn't take long for him to decide that the Home One was better for everyone alive. He knew why that force user was on board.

"Admiral Piett, do you read?" Vader asked through his helmet comm.

"Yes, my Lord."

"Target the Home One, and stand ready to destroy it on my command," Vader ordered.

Admiral Daala's eyes widened in silent fear.

"Sir?" asked the Admiral in disbelief.

"You heard me Admiral. Target the ship. Standby for my command," Vader repeated.

"Yes, my Lord," the Admiral acknowledged with obvious regret.

"Perhaps there is something you fear worse than me," Vader observed.

Daala didn't answer.

"Roland. Where is Commander Kratas?" he quizzed.

"Backup bridge, five decks down and toward the bow," Roland replied.

"How many different ways are there to kill him?" Vader pursued.

"I could do it four different ways," Roland answered matter-of-factly, "I could shut down the exhaust vent for the reactor core and cycle it into the ventilation system in his area. That would kill them pretty quick. I could cause a powersurge that lights up the entire room like a christmas tree, or I could vent the atmosphere in the area. That would take a while, as it would require them to use the built up oxygen before they could suffocate. However, sealing off the area should ensure some kind of death."

"Even if the fleet stands down. I wouldn't be able to stop operations on the Home One," Admiral Daala observed.

"I have no concern for them. However, you do, or more specifically, you have interest in two people that are on board," Vader replied with chilling detachment.

For the first time since trying to lock Roland out of the system, she looked Vader straight in his black eyes as she answered, "No I do not."

 **(Home One)**

The lightsabers clashed in a flurry of motion as the Ahsoka fought with her red haired attacker. The narrow hallway gave little room for maneuvering as the two fought. She had to admit that this person was better than the Inquisitors she had fought up to this point. As if to highlight this fact, the person managed to slide her red blade between Ahsoka's two blades. She could feel the searing heat from the blade as she leapt back from the attack.

Across from her, Mara was growing more and more frustrated by the second. Jedi or not, this was not her target. However, this person- Ahsoka, if she was remembering correctly- wouldn't give her the space to break away. Luckily, there was an intersection coming up. That was her one opportunity. As Ahsoka leapt back, she pressed her advantage. She swung high. She swung low. She blocked an overhead strike and swung at the Jedi's leg. As simple step back thwarted the attempt. However, through it all, the result was the same. The woman, while skilled, was forced to retreat. Inch by inch, foot by foot, she pressed. If she had the opening, she would take it. However, the constant echo of explosions told Mara that her time was limited.

"The ship is lost, yet you continue to fight. Why?" Ahsoka quizzed.

"Why do you think, Jedi?" Mara snarled as she pressed an attack.

If Ahsoka thought she was the target. She would be less interested in preventing an attempt to break away. However, instead of replying, Ahsoka launched herself into a backflip that put her squarely in the middle of the intersecting passages.

Only after she had solid footing, did she answer, "It's not me you're after."

 **(ISD Executor)**

Admiral Piet wiped a bead of sweat off his forehead as he directed the battle. So far things were falling into place. When they had attacked, the Imperial fleet had scattered itself into pockets across the area. This prevented the forces that came out of slipspace from outflanking them. It had the added benefit of having those ships surrounded. However, ships like the Shadow of Intent and the UNSC Infinity were proving too much for the Imperial fleet. They simply did not have the firepower to take the fleet down ship to ship, and their boarding teams were failing to gain suitable footholds. There were even some battlecruisers that had fully expelled their borders, while others were locked in bloody stalemates that neither side could break.

Even the Home One, which had been on the verge of being overrun, was now repelling its attackers. However, that didn't improve the ship's position. The Empire knew exactly what the value of that cruiser was and had determined that they would separate it from the rest of the allied fleet. The resulting crossfire was wreaking havoc on its shields and structural integrity.

"Sir. Multiple bombers have broken from their attack runs. They're headed for the Home One," called a crewmember.

"Two Star Destroyers have broken from the Infinity. They're engaging the Avenger and Right of Redemption," added another officer.

Admiral Piett didn't even have to look at the tactical board. He knew exactly what they were doing.

"Bring us down angle twenty degrees. Intensify portside shields and fire on the lead ship. Tell the Home One to back off, and have Wings 2 and 6 assist with the bombers," he ordered before demanding, "What's the Cruiser's status?"

"The Home One has pushed their borders back from Engineering and has them stalled two decks down from the bridge. The Shields are holding at forty percent, with multiple hull breaches on the portside. Structural integrity is at seventy percent," replied an officer from the comm station.

The Admiral nodded his head in acknowledgement before quizzing, "And what of our firing solution on them?"

At that moment the ship and by extension, the bridge tilted sharply downward in response to the Admiral's orders.

"We still have it. Seven heavy starboard batteries, eight medium batteries, and missile tubes five through nine once we level off," the Captain replied.

"Good. Keep it, but standby for my command," he ordered.

"Yes sir," the Captain answered crisply.

While the Captain questioned the orders. He did not question the Admiral. He had heard the exchange between him and Vader. This was out of the Admiral's hands and he knew it.

The ship shuttered under a new onslaught of lasers battered its portside shields. Admiral Piet felt a measure of satisfaction as a supporting Imperial Victory-Class Warship was broadsided by a MAC round off a UNSC Frigate. Having lost its shields, its was quickly swarmed by enemy TIES and X-Wings. Upon mentally logging its location and status in his head, the Admiral returned his focus to more pressing issues. There were a lot of Imperial ships left. Most were falling into bad shape. However, that didn't change the fact that they were still fighting. Despite his best attempts at helping, Piett was forced to watch helplessly as the Avenger succumbed to a barrage of lasers and proton torpedos that broke it apart into several different flaming chunks.

"We have ten life pods in the sky," reported a sensor operator.

The chatter from the crew pit suddenly increased as tractorbeam operators began coordinating who had what pods.

"I've got two pods," stated one operator, "Bringing them into hangar three."

"Copy. Pulling one into hangar one," acknowledged another person.

"Lost one, have two others. Bringing them in now," added someone else.

 **(Home One)**

"This is Gorgon control, to all Home One assets. Pull back. We are engaging them ship to ship. I repeat, capture is no longer the goal. All teams evacuate," ordered a distinctly male voice over Mara's comm.

The order was followed with a massive explosion that seemed to shake the ship down to its core. It threw her off balance and gave Ahsoka the small opening needed to take her head off. Taking it, Ahsoka struck out with her right blade in a quick swipe. However, Mara wouldn't be killed that easily. She ducked and half lept, half staggered back down the hall. The ship was now almost constantly shaking under what she assumed was a new, more intense salvo of lasers which made balancing while combating a seasoned force user hard. However, she continued, blow after blow. The blades clashed with each other in a series of near continuous screeches. More than once, both Ahsoka and Mara tried to use the force to shove the other. It didn't work. Both were too skilled to be thrown off by such a simple trick.

"You were trained well," Ahsoka observed as she tested Mara's outer defenses.

Mara simply grunted as she batted away one lightsaber, and then the next. Suddenly an alarm started screaming in the back of Mara's head. As she blocked an attempted stab at her chest, Mara saw the ceiling cave in- superheated energy pouring into the area that killed them both. However, this was not reality, at least not yet. Then next second, a series of explosions reverberated down the length of the ship. Ahsoka must have sensed the danger to because she instantly leapt backward in a force augmented leap. Shielding her eyes, Mara made the same move.

She was halfway through the leap when an ear piercing explosion flooded the room in an orange light. Out of the orange fireball daggers of white hot durasteel shot out in every direction. The resulting shockwave. Threw Mara even further down the hall than she wanted. She landed hard on her right leg. With an audible snap, it gave out and she was thrown hard into the metal deck and the whole world went black.

Ahsoka, only did marginally better as she landed hard against the deck on the opposite explosion. She managed to stop her head, inches from the floor, but a sharp stab of pain shot up her back and collided with the searing pain as heat off the explosion washed over her face.

* * *

"I think they're getting impatient," Rex commented as he fought to keep his balance through another explosion.

"No kidding," agreed the rebel soldier next to him as he adjusted his aim.

To the untrained eye, nothing seemed to have changed over the last few hours. After the initial shock of extra enemies, the Imperials had re-escalated things to a stalemate. However, Rex had fought too long on too many ships not to notice a change. The Imperials were retreating. They had quit adding to their numbers a while ago. However, now there were less of them, and not because they were all dying.

Leaning out from cover, the aging Captain shot one trooper, and then another. The one behind him was killed by a young rebel who quickly killed a grenade wielding stormtrooper right across from his first kill. The trooper went down, and the thermal detonator exploded seconds later with an earth shattering boom. In its wake were scattered, dismembered bodies; walls painted in blood; and an opening.

"Great shot kid!" Rex hollered before ordering, "Push forward. This ship won't retake itself."

"This is Commander Appo, we have multiple units breaking for the main hangars and Command is tracking several incoming shuttles. I'm moving to cut them off," Appo declared over the comm.

"Affirmative. Do we have a location on Ahsoka and that Inquisitor?" Rex asked in response.

"Section five-A. That's assuming she isn't dead. An explosion just tore that place to hell," Appo responded quickly.

The sound of blaster fire over the comm kept Rex from immediately responding. However, the minute it fell silent, Rex had an answer over his own background noise.

"What do you mean 'if she's alive'?" Rex demanded.

"Exactly what I have said. Like it or not, I've got a lot of more pressing issues than keeping track of her," Appo replied sharply.

Shaking his head, Rex decided that chewing out the Commander for not knowing something wouldn't get either of them anywhere.

"Alright. Cut off the units moving for the hangar, but make sure engineering is still secure," Rex concluded before closing the channel.

The response was drowned out by the sound of explosion as another thermal detonator went off.

 **(ISD Executor)**

Admiral Piett saw it before anyone else had the chance to tell him. The Imperials were breaking off their assaults. The Imperials, seemingly realizing that they were losing the battle, had turned every one of their remaining warships and fighters on the Executor, Home One, and Infinity. The tactic had been bloody, but a measured success. The Executor had lost its portside shields and was sporting at least twelve different fires that burned into the void of space. One of these was from when the remains of a salvo of lasers had tore into an ammo dump. The resulting explosion had torn a seven meter through and through hole. While multiple other hits had chewed through the shields and ripped up the armor underneath.

The Infinity had lost one MAC gun, multiple missile pods, and had lost a substantial about of its shields also. On top of that, a sustained attack on the ship's rear had crippled the slipspace drive, chewed multiple holes in the armor, and put at least one hanger out of commission. Not that it was of consequence. About a third of their fighters were never landing again.

Despite this, the Home One had taken the worst damage with its shields being reduced to thirty percent. On top of that, boarding parties had exploited the ship's extensive hull breaches to enter and overtake about half of the ship, including engineering. They had been forced out, but not before they damaged the core reactor and destroyed the hyperdrive. That is why their current move made no sense. Why were those Imperial ships now retreating?

"Sir, the Imperial fleet is-"

Admiral Piett waved the Captain silent as he stared out the viewport.

"I'm well aware. Hail the Gorgon," he ordered.

"Yes sir," the Captain ordered before relaying the order.

This was met with a hushed answer from the comm operator.

The Captain listened intently before turning to the Admiral and declaring, "Sir. Vice Admiral Virra is hailing us. He wishes to discuss terms for a surrender."

"Where's Admiral Daala," Piett demanded in reply.

There was a reply as the comm operator said something into his headset.

The man nodded before answering, "Believed KIA. Both the main and auxiliary bridge have fallen silent."

As he was speaking, the Captain had turned his attention to the man's partner. After listening to what the man had to say, he walked over to the now thinking, Admiral.

"Sir, Roland confirmed it to the Infinity. The Gorgon's command crew are KIA. Roland didn't go into detail beyond that, however," the man answered in a hushed tone.

Piett didn't need any more detail. He had been around Vader long enough that his imagination could fill in the rest.

"Understood," Piett answered before turning to the comm officer, "Tell them to disengage their ships, retract fighters, and order their men to stand down. I will contact the Admiral in one hour with terms."

"Yes sir."

 **(ISD Chimaera, high orbit over Honoghr)**

There was absolutely nothing about this mission that Captain Pellaeon liked. Luke had made sure that he had read the briefing in full, and the Captain was now wishing he hadn't. They had to convince a society of warriors that they had been lied to by the same people that they felt honor bound to serve. On top of that, they had to convince them that the Alliance had not in fact been the ones who destroyed their world. Instead, it was a faction that had been dead long before Empire found them. A farmboy and aging Captain had to do not only this, but rendezvous with another commando group and get all of the hundred thousand plus people aboard before an Imperial fleet arrived to kill everyone.

"Sir, our contact is up in your quarters- channel two," whispered the Commander upon approach.

"Good. Let me know when Commander Skywalker is done talking," Captain Pellaeon ordered.

"Yes sir."

With that, he retreated to his quarters. Upon entering, he did a quick visual scan for listening devices before activating the holoprojector on the back wall. He was instantly greeted by a tired looking man in the grey uniform of the Imperial Security Bureau.

"A battlegroup is inbound. Thrawn ordered a battlegroup out of Lothal. ETA is thirty-six hours," the man said quickly before casting a nervous glance behind him.

The Captain shook his head. This wasn't good, but it was better than he had hoped.

"Who's in command?" he pressed.

"Admiral Constantine. He's about the only person available at the moment," the man stated.

 _Well, at least they sent the most incompetent man possible,_ Captain Pellaeon thought before asking, "What's the feeling in the Core?"

"Not good. No one is saying much, but it's pretty bad. From what I can tell, Coruscant is lost, as is Naboo, Chrystosis, Yaga Minor, and Duro. Imperials are engaged on several other worlds as well," The man answered gravely.

"What about the commandos? Can we trust them?" Captain Pellaeon quizzed.

"Yes. Reports are coming in from all over the fleet about security teams engaging the Commandos. They have nowhere else to go," the agent answered.

"Alright. Report again when you can. Chimaera out," the Captain concluded before cutting the transmission.

Upon finishing, he took the time to wash his face and grab a cup of fresh caf before returning up to the bridge. As he entered, he was met by the Commander, his second-in-command.

"Sir. The commando team from the Seventh Fleet is here," the man stated, "And Commander Skywalker is requesting the evac ships. They aren't happy, but they agreed to go."

"Bring the commando team in and send the kid his ships," Captain Pellaeon ordered.

"Yes sir."

With that he made his way to the holotable and punched in Commander Skywalker's frequency. A few seconds later, he was met with an anxious, young looking Commander.

"Commander Skywalker, I hear your talks were successful. Several ships are coming in" he observed.

"Yes. They were. Several of them are not happy. Tell your men to tread carefully. There is still some confliction when it comes to loyalties," Luke warned.

"I hope you realize I don't have the resources to stop them if they turn on us," the Captain warned as his face grew hard.

"They won't," Luke replied with a renewed confidence.

Captain Pellaeon almost missed it at first. Yet, there it was. The kid may have been more even tempered, but Captain Pellaeon had worked with Anakin enough to recognize the glint in the kid's eye. It was equal parts inspiring and worrisome during the Clone Wars, just like it was now with the Jedi's kid, no man. He didn't know any kids who would have been alive long enough to be in this position right now.

"You know your father, Anakin, had that glint in his eye once," the Captain observed, "I was lucky to have a ship when he was done."

"You fought with him in the Clone Wars?" Luke asked with eyes widened in surprise.

"Only once or twice. Let me tell you though, he was the kind of person that once you met him, you never forgot him," the Captain answered with a sense of added sincerity.

He watched as the Commander contemplated his words. He went to answer, but was stopped short by a Naghori in full armor. They exchanged a few hushed words before Luke turned back to the Captain.

"How long do we have?" Luke asked.

"According to our source, thirty-six hours. Make it thirty-five. I want to be out of this system when the Imperial battle group arrives," Pellaeon replied crisply.

Luke frowned and a look of worry formed on his face.

However, there was none in his voice when he answered, "It'll be pushing it. I'm going to see what I can help with."

"Understood. Make sure they know that the fleet can handle things such as food, medical supplies, and weapons. Take only what they absolutely need. Chimaera out," Captain Pellaeon concluded before severing the connection.

With that he walked over to where the Commander was directing a couple young officers on a system repair.

"Commander, make sure that every ship that can take on passengers is moving planetside," he ordered.

"Yes sir. The first wave of Sentinel and Lambda-Class shuttles are in route," the Commander answered as he looked up from the console.

Satisfied, the Captain walked away, toward the view port where the planet hung, taking up most of the visible area. Now came the hard part of waiting.


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey, everyone. So, I have it. The next chapter is here and the choice everyone seems to want made. Anyway, I know it's a bit slower, and a bit shorter, but I think everyone will like it none the less.**

 **That said, I would love to not just guess on that. In fact I would love to hear what you all think. Do you like the chapter? Do you like the story? Is there any glaring errors (grammar or plot)? It's getting lonely not hearing from you all. With that, sit back, enjoy, and please remember to review.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you Chapter 18.**

* * *

 **(Maw Research Station)**

Ahsoka felt the ripple echo through the force. It wasn't anything malicious, just a simple ripple in relatively calm waters. Unable to sleep herself, Ahsoka ceased her pacing through the research station, and made her way to the source. The halls were lit dimly in a surprisingly effective attempt to simulate night time on the captured base. With the surrender of the Imperial fleet had come the surrender of the Maw Station. The acting Vice-Admiral had been surprisingly sympathetic to the rebellion and hadn't fought too hard against the collision's demands. The base had been surrendered with almost no shots being fired. Having fought on the Home One, the lack of destruction had been disconcerting.

As Ahsoka followed the ripple through the base's winding corridors, she quickly noticed that it was emanating from Vader. It finally came to a stop in an empty auxiliary hanger. Even in the blackness of the hanger, Vader stood in stark contrast against the blue glow of the energy shield at the end of the hanger.

Unsure of what to do, Ahsoka kept her distance. It was clear in the force that the man was troubled. She prodded gently in the force. Ahsoka expected to be violently forced out. However, instead she wasn't. Instead, the troubled feeling changed into anger, and fear. In her time as a Padawan, she had become use to the emotions. She was often awoken by them whenever Anakin would have a nightmare. At the time she thought nothing of it. Every Jedi had them, especially during the war. Now, however, she wondered if they weren't a warning for her to have seen. Slowly Ahsoka felt herself sliding down the slope of questioning her own past decisions.

"There was nothing you could have done," Vader declared as he stared out into space, "you would be dead too."

Ahsoka felt some of that anger turn to regret and didn't know how to respond at first.

"Another nightmare," she finally asked, dodging Vader's statement.

Vader nodded before replying, "There was a time when I hated them. They made for many sleepless nights. The only way I stayed sane was knowing which ones mattered, and which ones didn't… Now, I would give anything to have something so simple as a common nightmare."

There was another round of silence and Vader's thoughts began to drift as he clasped his hands behind his back. Unable to leave, Ahsoka simply stood at the edge of the shadows. Soon the slow ebb and flow of emotions turned into a torrent of emotions. Pain, fear, regret, and anger all swirled. However, soon they gave way to hate.

"Twenty years, Tano. That's how long I thought I had killed her," Vader growled.

"You didn't?" Ahsoka asked with an accusatory edge.

Vader stiffened, but simply shook his head as he replied, "No. I'm sure that if given twenty more seconds I would have, but I did not."

"Then who… Oh." Ahsoka replied as she answered her own question.

"It's ironic. I was driven insane by my quest to save her. Yet, I was the one person in the whole galaxy that would hurt her," Vader stated as his anger grew, "I found the force trick he used," -Ahsoka saw the energy shield flicker as Vader's anger grew- "In saving my life, he took hers," -the shields began to flicker so rapidly that she feared they might give out as Vader's hate flooded into the force, "At the same time Sidious secured my place at his side, unable to challenge him."

Ahsoka was about to say something about the shields, but decided against it as Vader seemed to regain control of his emotions. As the shields settled into their blue glow, Ahsoka thought she could see the Sith physically shake from the effort of containing his emotions.

Instead, Ahsoka quizzed, "Unable or unwilling to challenge him?"

Vader allowed himself a thin smile as he replied, "I was more than willing to challenge him. However, I was never able to succeed. The limitations of my suit made that impossible."

Ahsoka nodded and fell silent as she contemplated everything. Minutes ticked by as the two stood in silence. Both were fully aware, but neither was willing to walk away. Vader was too prideful to give the appearance of retreat, and Ahsoka felt as though her feet were attached to the durasteel floor by some invisible, unbreakable force. At first she felt cold in a way that seemed to cut through to her very bones. However, as time passed, she felt a small ray of warmth in the coldness. She saw one ray of light in the shadow known as Vader.

"When we last met on Malachor, I knew the light was dead in you. I had searched for it and come up empty. You were cold, jaded, and fully submerged in the darkside," Ahsoka started before pausing to choose her words.

"I was cold and jaded as a Jedi," Vader interjected.

"No you weren't," she argued, "You were many things, but you cared. You valued the men at your command. Looking back, I know that you loved your wife. Of all the people in the temple, you grieved the most when Obi Wan was presumed dead. You fought for me when everyone else quit. You were never this… this shadow."

Vader winced at the memories.

"What is your point, Tano?" he demanded.

"This isn't you. This suit, those dead, and your turmoil are not you," Ahsoka answered firmly.

"Yes they are. The minute I chose to leave Mortis, they became mine to own. I was offered a chance to stop this, to bring the force into balance. I failed. I have seen it. These scars are mine. This suit is mine. I own every drop of blood spilt," Vader replied, "There is no hope. There is no atonement. I made my choices and I will own them."

"You are right. Nothing can fix the past. You will never be able to wash the blood off your hands. However, you don't have to add to it," Ahsoka countered.

"I do if it means the death of the Emperor," Vader argued.

"Then what? That power will consume you, just as it did the Emperor," Ahsoka pressed.

"Power doesn't consume. It does not make someone bad. It simply exposes what was beneath the surface. Sidious wasn't consumed by it. He was revealed by it," Vader stated firmly, "Power has already revealed my true colors and my true destiny. Ruling does not interest me anymore. I have other purposes, far more reaching than simple politics."

"If that is the path you choose, then so be it. May you find happiness in it," Ahsoka concluded solemnly as she turned to leave.

 **(UNSC Infinity: 12 hours later)**

The hangar came alive as gunships entered the hangar in groups of two. The collective warble of the engines drowned out all communication accept hand signals. With a calmness born from years of experience, crewmen with two lighted batons each, guided the ships to their resting places. Further complicating the task was the fact that Pelicans were exiting out the opposite door to help pick up weapons and equipment. Slowly a crowd formed on along the edge as Marines appeared to help with the unloading. Standing at the front of the crowd was Commander Appo and Captain Rex. Having worked with this equipment before, they were asked to help the crews go over the ships and walkers to make sure everything worked and see what needed fixed.

As the first of the AT TEs appeared in the hangar, Rex could see two issues already. Hanging off the sides were thick, black plates of Durasteel that hugged the center leg, and someone had expanded the barrel on the main cannon.

"Am I the only one who-"

"No," Rex interrupted firmly as the last of the ships powered down, "Let's see how bad they screwed these up."

"I have the right front," Appo stated as he took off for the nearest tank.

With a nod, Rex went for the one next to it. As he approached the tank, it became even more obvious where other pieces of black plating had been added around all six legs, and up on top. He couldn't suppress a sigh as he looked it over. Rex quickly mounted the tank and examined the turret.

"Well, how bad is it?" asked a mechanic as he struggled to climb up.

"No… right foot there… That's right, now- No! Get your damn foot out of there. That's a good way to crush it… That's good. Now left foot. Right foot here, and pull yourself up," Rex directed as he guided the man up.

Instead of answering, the mechanic's original question, Rex wordlessly threw open (or at least attempted to throw open) the door to the crew compartment. They had laid the extra plating over the door and simply cut along the preexisting edge of the door, and removed a chunk of durasteel behind it so the door could swing open. Upon dropping into the belly of the tank, he saw nothing obviously wrong. However, he knew better. The devil was in the details. He quickly produced a glow rod and started pulling open various hatches and maintenance panels. The mechanic thought about asking again, but the string of curses and grumbles coming from the white-armored officer in front of him gave him the answer. Occasionally Rex would pause to point out something, but mostly kept to himself as he looked.

For well over an hour, Rex criss-crossed the tank examining various systems. Finally, he motioned the mechanic to follow him topside.

Once the man was out, he explained, "The bad news is that I've seen better repair work from a cadet… under fire. Most if not everything in there is in need of repair. The work was haphazard and clearly done by someone who knew just enough to be dangerous. The good news is that we were expecting this, and we have an entire battle field to salvage from."

"Yes, but those are all warships and equipment at least ten years newer," countered the mechanic.

"It doesn't matter. They were all made by the same company. Kuat is good, but they're still cheap bastards. Chances are you will find more interchangeable parts than anyone wants to admit. It may take some work, but we can get these operational," Rex answered.

"I see. So where exactly do we start? You know these better than anyone working on this ship," he quizzed.

"Lose the black plates. These things are slow as it is. Four tons of dead weight isn't going to do anything but turn these into an even slower laser-magnets," Rex answered as he emphatically gestured to the plating under his feet, "It should be a simple matter of grinding down the rivets."

For the next few minutes they stood on top of the walker as Rex rattled off a list of what needed fixed. For his part, the mechanic simply nodded as he rapidly took notes on a data pad and only interjected for the occasional question.

Across the bay, Luke walked down a line of gunships as his eyes picked out every single detail in silent awe. The crew compartment and wings were so different, yet so similar to the dozen or so Imperial shuttles he had seen over the course of his life. What was once pristine, white paint was now almost a dirty cream color from years of hard use and minimal maintenance. Blaster scoring marked the sides of the ship, while a multitude of scratches etched the windshield like the scars of a seasoned veteran. As he walked, Luke almost thought he could hear the doors snapping open; the whoosh of the rockets; and the sound of lasers digging into the metal.

"Many people lived and died in these gunships," Vader stated.

Startled, Luke whipped around with his lightsaber in hand.

"Quick, but you still would have been dead," Vader corrected, "Beware of your surroundings both visually and through the Force. Let nothing startle you."

Luke simply nodded as he relaxed. Turning back to the gunship, he noted a large, vicious animal of some kind painted on the side of the ship. A quick look, revealed the design was mirrored on the other side as well.

"What's with the design?" he asked curiously.

Vader took a look and allowed a smile of recognition.

"During the Clone Wars, the men were given few ways in which to express themselves. One of the few ways pilots could was through painting a design on their ship. They were thought to bring good luck," Vader explained, "I, personally, remember this one. His name was Hawk. He saved my life many times, and was easily one of the best pilots I knew… behind your master of course."

"What happened to him?" Luke pursued.

"I am unaware of what ultimately happened to him. He was transferred off the Resolute later in the war," Vader replied matter-of-factly.

"I worry about keeping ammo in stock for them. Those are some serious blaster cannons, and let's not forget the missiles," Luke observed warily as he changed the subject.

"I don't. Those rockets are the same as what we use in the Juggernauts. The Executor has a whole cash of those, on top of what we brought in. Byss isn't exactly the ideal location for those tanks anyways. The blaster packs can come off a flak gun if we have too. It would take some rewiring but it could be done," Vader countered with a dismissive wave.

 **(ISD Conviction: High orbit over Byss)**

Thrawn read the intelligence report with annoyance as he made his way to the forward hangar bay. News was spreading far and wide through rebel channels that they had secured the Maw installation and Kentara Station in a string of lopsided victories. Of course their report of the events had been an exaggeration, but a lack of concrete intelligence meant that the military was struggling to effectively counter it. As if to add salt to the wound, the Crimson had disappeared, as well as an Interdictor known as the Hellborne. Izard and Emperor Palpatine were both frothing at the mouth over this, Thrawn was sure.

However, what they didn't know is that unlike Imperial Intelligence, Thrawn had managed to get his own probes close to the fleet by way of a small, little-known gap in the black holes. He knew exactly what the joint-fleet looked like. Thrawn was well aware that, theoretically, this was his best opportunity to put an end to both the fleet and the Alliance as a military force. Yet the Flood kept him from acting, or at least gave him a reason not to. Explaining that it would eat too many resources had been simple despite the fact that Thrawn really wasn't sure he wanted the fleet destroyed yet. The more he thought about it, the less Thrawn was convinced that the fleet was a bad thing.

He entered the hanger, and was met with a ceremonial escort of Stormtroopers. He gave them a nod as he climbed into the shuttle. Falling in behind him, the four Stormtroopers followed him up the ramp with a precision all unto themselves. The ride down to the Palace was quick. Thrawn was originally offered a room there, but declined. He found something oddly comforting about his ship. Planetary surfaces didn't suit him as well, especially when he had a war to fight.

After what felt like forever, the ship touched down on the central landing pad. As the ramp lowered, the Stormtroopers marched down the ramp in two rows of two. Almost instantly they dropped to a knee. Thrawn did no such thing as he descended down the ramp, toward the Emperor and his towering, red clothed guards.

"My Lord," he acknowledged as he gave a brief bow.

"Walk with me, Thrawn," ordered the Emperor with notable malice.

Thrawn nodded as he fell into step next to and slightly behind the Emperor, while motioning for the troopers to stay with the ship.

"Surely you have heard of the failure in the Maw," Palpatine stated.

"I have. It is… most unfortunate," Thrawn answered carefully.

"Yes, and it is yours," Palpatine accused.

"Is it?" Thrawn countered, "It's my understanding that I was in Coruscant at the time."

"Your arrogance is unwelcome," the Emperor growled, "You may not have been there at the time of the battle, but my dear Admiral, you were the one who appointed the Commanding officers. They were operating under your orders according to your plan."

"They were not. I gave them orders to hold the Maw in my absence. However, I gave them no orders on how to do so. I knew the situation would be to fluid. Instead I left trust in the Commanders who would know what was happening. Their failure is their own," Thrawn calmly argued.

"And you left the most inexperienced one in command," Palpatine added.

"Of the officers I talked to, she appeared to be the most capable, even if inexperienced," Thrawn replied.

"Perhaps there was a reason she was left in at an obscure outpost," Palpatine hissed.

"She guarded some of the Empire's -your- greatest projects. She knew that area better than any of the other Commanding Officers. She displayed above average performance all throughout her time in the Imperial Naval Academy," Thrawn calmly explained.

"Not according to her instructors," Palpatine corrected.

"I read of her time at the academy, and found them rather unreliable. That why I did not take their word. I relied on the observation holovideos and the late Tarkin's personal accounts," Thrawn stated flatly.

"He was her lover," Palpatine snapped.

"He was your closest advisor and one of your earliest allies. You knew about them. If you had a real problem, you would have put an end to it," Thrawn countered as they entered a large room with a holotable dominating the center, "He was loyal, and so was she."

"Admiral," Palpatine barked as he came to a stop and drew himself to his full height, "It does not matter how you seek to justify it. They have failed and by extension so have you. You have one chance to make this right."

Knowing that he had just used up all of his years of credited patience, Thrawn fell silent and nodded.

"Hmm… I would remind you that my patience is not infinite," the Emperor warned as he lead the way to the holotable.

Upon pressing a few buttons, the Emperor was rewarded with a large holomap of the galaxy with various symbols and shaded areas that presented the current situation, complete with the location of rebel ships, Flood infected planets, and Imperial locations and movements. To most it wouldn't have looked bad. The Imperials still had a lot on the map. However, to Thrawn's experienced eyes it looked grim.

"I am sending Admiral Lochlan to fix your mess in the Maw," Emperor Palpatine explained.

"It won't work."

"I know that," the Emperor snapped before easing his tone, "It is merely a delaying action. There is an artifact, the ring. It is the source of this parasite, and most importantly, a weapon."

"My Lord, that's suicide," Thrawn gasped in horror as he made the connection.

"What choice do we have? The Flood grows more everyday and Vader only works to compound the issues." Emperor Palpatine reasoned.

"My Lord, that weapon will kill everyone. What good is this fighting if you are to kill yourself in the end?" Thrawn protested.

"I will survive. As the wayward Lord Vader once said, 'The ability to destroy a planet is nothing compared to the power of the force.'" Emperor Palpatine defiantly stated.

"And what then do you plan on ruling? Status means nothing when you are ruling a pile of ashes," Thrawn demanded.

"I would rather rule a pile of ashes than leave it to the forces that assail us. One day we will rise again, and I will be there as its unchallenged ruler," the Emperor declared with almost over-the-top gravatas.

There was a wild look in the Emperor's eyes that send a shiver down the Admiral's spine. Despite that, Thrawn simply frowned and nodded his head as he flushed all emotion out of his voice and facial expressions. His mind had just been made up for him. Emperor Palpatine was no longer fit to rule.

"What would you have me do?" Thrawn asked calmly.

"That is better," Emperor Palpatine noted with a cold smile before explaining, "You are to take the seventh fleet and rendezvous with the third and eighth battle groups out of the Black Fleet. You will find a number of welcome surprises. With your combined forces, you will make an assault on the ring, and secure both the control room and index."

"Yes, my Lord," Thrawn acknowledged as he silently located the battle groups in question, "Is that all?"

"It is, and Admiral Thrawn?"

"Yes?"

"My patience is officially gone. Failure would be most unwise," Emperor Palpatine warned in a voice dripping with contempt.

"Of course. I will report when the ring is secured," Thrawn replied with a short, stiff bow.

"Good. Now go," the Emperor ordered.

Thrawn drew to attention, before spinning on his right heel and making his way back to the shuttle that delivered him. Now it was time to see if he was truly the tactical genius that everyone else believed him to be.


	19. Chapter 19

**Hey everyone. So, I have the next chapter out. Now, I know I made a point of listing off all of the ships involved with Thrawn's "mission". I also know that some may think that was pointless due to what happens in this chapter. I would simply ask everyone to be patient. They do have a place.**

 **That said, I'd love to know what you all think, so please remember to review and tell me what you think (even if you don't like the story). With that said, sit back, read, enjoy, and please remember to review.**

 **Without further ado, I give you chapter 19.**

* * *

 **(ISD Chimerea: high orbit over Honoghr)**

Captain Pellaeon watched out the viewport as the last of the ships hustled for the safety of the Star Destroyer. The Captain was satisfied with their progress. It was slower than he wished, but faster than he could reasonably ask for, and the ship was filling quickly. Ideally, he would make at least three trips out of this and/or have multiple ships helping with the evacuation. However, that simply wasn't possible, and making multiple trips would mean signing unnecessary death warrants. Given the Empire's previous actions, it was only fair that they helped save the race. Spare living quarters had quickly been filled past capacity as beings were forced to sleep on the floors and on cots in the deep storage area, and along the walls in the auxiliary hangers.

"Captain!" Hollered one of the sensor operators, "We have five Imperial-Class Warships arriving in Sector six."

"Show me," the Captain ordered as he approached the tactical board.

As he came to a stop, five red dots appeared directly off the starboard side in a rough v-shape. Right now, they were out of gun-range. However, Captain Pellaeon knew enough to know that the Admiral would close the gap soon enough. As he was looking, the Captain saw the two ships closest to him break off. Their trajectories would put one in front of him, and one coming straight at his broadside, while the rest cut to the surface and cut off his rear. Captain Pellaeon had to admit that was one of the most sound decisions he had ever seen from the man, but one easily countered.

"Raise the forward shields, and bring us around one-hundred degrees starboard. Focus fire on the nearest ship. Tell Commander Skywalker to take what he has and get back up here with those last ships. We are out of time," the Captain ordered quickly.

"Sir, that puts us turning into the fleet," protested the Commander.

"We can take the beating for a time. We need to give that time to Skywalker," he replied firmly.

"Yes sir," replied the Commander before issuing the necessary orders.

The deck tilted sharply under the Captain's feet as his ship swung around. After a quick but agonizing few seconds the Chimerea's forward guns roared to life as the first Star Destroyer came into range. The ship bucked as the target ship returned fire.

"Forward at quarter speed," Pellaeon ordered.

"Yes sir," came a tense response.

"Skywalker is lifting off. ETA five minutes," reported the communications officer.

"Tell him that he has until I get us a hole out of here," the Captain replied sharply.

The officer nodded as he relayed the message. Aware of the new and very real threat, Admiral Constantine's ships turned in an attempt to inject their own lasers into the battle. Within the next minute, the Chimerea began to feel the abuse as the ship rocked and bucked under the lashing. However, she and her crew did not take it standing down.

"Bring us down twenty degrees. Focus on the main shields of that forward ship," the Captain ordered as he pointed to the ship in front and partially off his portside.

Being slightly below the Chimerea, Admiral Constantine had not staggered his ships vertically. This meant that as the Chimerea came down to their level, every ship's guns- except the one that had been coming at him head on- fell silent for a few precious seconds as they attempted to aim around each other.

Taking advantage of this, Captain Pellaeon pressed the attack. His guns unleashed a ferocious hailstorm of lasers on the relatively unprotected underside of the oncoming ship. In response, the targeted ship dipped to the starboard side in an attempt to protect itself and give it's heavy guns a good firing solution that they suddenly lacked.

The previous beating on the Chimerea resumed as the Imperial ships started to reacquire their target. The ship bucked, fires were seen burning into the vacuum of space, and the echo of muffled explosions was accented by alarms at various duty stations.

"Shield status," Captain Pellaeon demanded.

"Ninety percent, and dropping slowly," reported a young lieutenant.

The Captain nodded before ordering, "Bring us up thirty degrees and around ten twenty degrees starboard."

"Captain?"

"Just do it, Commander," he barked.

The Captain was already questioning the idea of trying to dogfight with a capital ship and didn't need his Commander verbally echoing his internal struggle. Despite this, the crew's response was quick and he was now committed. As the next minute and a half drug on, the move had its desired effect. Having shot right up the middle of the admiral's formation, he now had them tangled in knots trying not to shoot or run into each other. Of course there was now no way to avoid the situation seeing as the only other option was being outflanked, and Phoenix Squadron had taught him the dangers of that.

"Shields?" he quizzed.

"Eighty percent, and weaker on the upper starboard side," reported the Commander this time.

"Come around thirty degrees portside and balance out the shields," Captain Pellaeon ordered, "Focus fire on the nearest ship."

This time there was no question as the crew worked to carry out his orders. The crew worked quickly and efficiently for the next few minutes as they worked to out maneuver the Imperial fleet. It worked but at a cost. The ship suffered at least two major hull breaches as it scraped against a ship attempting to cut it off, and engineering suffered extensive damage from sustained fire.

"Where's Commander Skywalker?" Captain Pellaeon demanded.

"He's closing fast off our stern. Thirty seconds and closing," reported the Commander.

"Good. Get him on, and get us lined up for the first jump," the Captain ordered.

"Yes sir."

The rest of the fight moved quickly as the engines roared to full power. Now came the race. The ship continued to rock as lasers dug into its backside.

"Captain, we've lost thruster two," the Commander reported.

"Divert more power to the rear shields," Captain Pellaeon replied quickly.

A "Yes sir," emanated from the crew pit. Looking at the tactical board, the Captain watched as all five of the Imperial warships fell in behind him. The seasoned Captain simply shook his head. If that Admiral had one weakness, it was his tunnel vision. Not that it mattered, now.

"Sir, the Commander is on board and the hanger is sealed," reported an officer.

"Coordinates are locked," added the helm.

"Make the jump," Captain Pellaeon ordered quickly.

The response was quick as the hyperdrive came to life. Stars turned into white streaks against an ever-shrinking backdrop of black. With a muffled pop, these streaks of realspace gave way to the relative safety of hyperspace.

 **(ISD Conviction: Imperial rally point alpha)**

Admiral Thrawn stared at the images with a thoughtful frown. Taken with a Viper probe droid, they showed a patchwork of various civilian and military craft manning a rough defensive line around the Halo ring. All of them were damaged to some extent with some of the warships showing extensive structural damage. All and all, that line wouldn't be hard to break. For any conventional battle against any conventional enemy, Thrawn had the firepower to force his way to the surface. His fleet contained four Executor-Class warships, one of which contained a cloaking device, Twenty-plus Imperial-Class Star Destroyers, and at least double that amount of Interdictors and light Cruisers.

However, this wasn't any conventional enemy, and Thrawn new better. Plus, closer inspection revealed some peculiarities in this formation. Unlike the blockade over Coruscant, it was organized almost exactly like an Imperial blockade. The smaller ships were staggered out in front of the larger Star Destroyers, and each ship was set so that it's field of fire overlapped with that of at least two other ships. The Flood was getting smarter. Thrawn shook his head as the feeling of betrayal grew. This mission was suicide. Even if he got to the surface, no one would survive. Sure they may get the Index off world, but the ships would be overrun, and his ground team would never be able to hold any of the ground they took. Palpatine had to have known. He also knew that Thrawn wouldn't abandon the mission to save his own skin, thus ensuring his own death.

"Sir, the last of the eighth battlegroup is here," reported his Captain.

"Good. Tell the first battle group to prepare for the jump into hyperspace," Thrawn ordered tensely.

"What of the other groups?" quizzed the Captain.

"They have their orders. Inform them that the operation has begun," Thrawn answered with a reassuring look.

"Yes sir," the Captain acknowledged before turning to issue orders to the crew.

The Admiral took up station in his command chair as he observed the crew. As he did, the Admiral became more and more enraged. That Emperor was so deep in his power fantasy that he failed to realize the lives he was sacrificing. If the Emperor had contained his rage to only Thrawn, he would be fine. He wouldn't like it, but he would respect the man more he did now. Now, Thrawn simply wished he had put a laser through Palpatine's head back on Byss. However, he couldn't, and was not foolish enough to think otherwise. Once they were successfully in hyperspace, the Captain approached him.

"Sir, what exactly is the plan?" He asked carefully.

"The plan, my Captain, is simple. You and the battlegroup will take up station on the outer edge of the system. I will accompany a strike team to the surface. We will retrieve the Index from the library, and return it to the Conviction," Thrawn replied with an unnerving purr to his voice.

"Wasn't our mission to secure the control room as well?" his Captain asked as his eyes narrowed.

"It was, and the situation has changed. We will secure the index. However, we do not have the men to take and hold the area required. Therefore, I am not going to throw the fleet away on a suicide mission. We will return with more ships, and more men," Thrawn answered without skipping a beat.

The Captain nodded slowly before asking, "And what of the other ships?"

 _You're getting bolder. Good,_ Thrawn mentally observed before answering, "They are covering our flanks. This Flood is learning quickly. I do not wish to grant them any advantage- real or perceived."

This made sense to the Captain, and it showed as he responded, "Of course sir."

With the end of the conversation, the bridge fell into a tense silence as the crew went about their tasks. The only thing that broke the silence was the occasional hushed conversation and the rhythmic thump of the Captain's boots against the deck as he paced up and down the bridge. Thrawn fought hard to retain his own calm as he watched the tunnel of hyperspace streak past the viewport.

After an hour-long test of Thrawn's discipline and patience, he stood up and moved for the exit. On the way, he caught the Captain's eye and motioned him over. The man moved quickly and met him at the rear blast door.

"I am going down with the strike team. You are in command of the fleet. If I do not return, leave. Go into the unknown regions. For your own sake, do not report back to Palpatine," Thrawn ordered firmly.

"Sir… I-I'm afraid I don't understand," the Captain stammered.

"You will when the time is right," Thrawn replied softly as he gave the Captain a datapad, "Right now I need you to trust me, and read this."

"Yes sir," the Captain agreed uneasily.

With a satisfied nod, Thrawn turned and exited. Even as the blast doors hissed shut, the Admiral could picture the Captain's eyes glued to the door. Admiral Thrawn shrugged it off as he made his way to his private quarters. Once inside, he grabbed an armored vest from his closet and strapped it on. After that, he strapped on his wide-angle commander's helmet, and black, armored gloves. Once everything was tight and in place, he grabbed his personal sidearm, plus extra power cells and a personal vibroblade he kept. Once he was done, he made his way to the armory and grabbed a blaster rifle, some spare power cells, and a handful of thermal detonators. When he was satisfied with his load out, the Admiral made his way to the main hangar.

There a platoon of white and red armored shock troopers stood waiting for him. Thrawn noted with pleasure that several of them were holding durasteel blast shields. While others had flamethrowers attached to their backs. In the mess of interconnecting operations and plans, he had not thought to order these units. Their appearance showed initiative on part of the Lieutenant. This was something Thrawn made a mental note of as he approached the waiting group.

"Commander on deck!" called the Lieutenant in charge as he caught sight of the Admiral.

Everyone snapped to attention.

"At ease," Thrawn acknowledged with a nod.

The troopers relaxed slightly as Thrawn took position next to a holoprojector. Upon pressing a few keys, he was rewarded with a view of a massive tower complex that was connected by a series of plasma bridges. In the middle was a large wide tower that narrowed as it shot further into the sky. Surrounding it was a ring of similar shaped but smaller towers with plasma bridges connecting them to the center like spokes on a wheel.

"Gentlemen, whatever you heard about this mission and our orders previously is to be discarded," Thrawn ordered before moving on, "This is our target. It is a large structure known as the library. We will drop here in the entryway," -Thrawn pointed to the southernmost point where a bridge intersected with the center tower in an opening big enough to flight two shuttles in side-by-side- "From there we will press our way in toward the center where the Index is located. Once it is secured, we will press our way out to this bridge here," -Thrawn pointed to the bridge that came in at a ninety-degree angle relative to the bridge they would be inserting by- "Whereupon we will be extracted and returned to the Conviction Make no mistake, this mission will carry a stiff price. Many of you will not return. Your only reward in death will be knowledge that you helped save the Empire. Bodies will not be recovered, and the missing will not be rescued. With this knowledge, I am making this mission voluntarily. If any wish to back out, I will not hold it against you… Any questions?"

There was a moment of uneasy silence as the troopers cast glances at each other through their helmets. No one was going to back out. Voluntary or not, they had been given this mission. They would see it done. However, that didn't ease the discomfort that came with facing these monsters head on. Finally, a trooper with the markings of a Sergeant raised his hand.

"Yes Sergeant."

"Sir, I think I'd like to think that speak for the entire platoon when I say that we'd be happy to take the fight to those monsters for once," the Sergeant declared as he cracked his knuckles.

Several of the troopers started to slowly nod their heads as they processed the Sergeant's words. The man may have overstated, but it slowly started to have it's intended affect.

"I agree with the Sergeant. I'll be nice to fight them on our terms for once," agreed the Lieutenant.

"Yes sir," agreed a Private from toward the back.

"Let's kill the bugs!" called a Corporal from off to Thrawn's right.

The responses were delayed, but the building enthusiasm helped waylay some of the Admiral's worry. He had made the mission voluntary, because he needed men ready and willing to go. Clearly this group was both. At that moment Thrawn's comm link chimed.

"Admiral Thrawn," he stated crisply as he activated the comm link.

"Admiral, we are coming out of lightspeed," the Captain reported.

"Good take up station. You have your orders. Thrawn out," he acknowledged before putting away the device.

"Any questions," Admiral quizzed again.

This time the troopers all shook their heads "no" as they looked at the Admiral.

"Alright. Dismissed," Admiral Thrawn concluded crisply.

With that, the unit turned and left without so much as a glance back as they took themselves and their gear to an awaiting Sentinel-Class Assault Shuttle. The weight of the operation pressed everyone into silence as the shuttle took off. They weren't dumb. Everyone there had faced the Flood over Coruscant. They knew what they were up against and it didn't inspire confidence. Whatever inspiration the Admiral's presence caused was lost in the awaiting horrors below.

A half-hour into the flight to the ring, and the assault craft began to tilt and shake as muffled explosions were heard outside the shuttle.

"We're passing through the blockade," informed the pilot.

The next several minutes were nerve racking as the ship ducked and weaved around the deadly lasers. After what felt like forever, things began to settle down as the ship entered the ring's atmosphere.

"Sixty seconds to drop," the pilot advised.

The deployment bay of the ship was bathed in a dull red glow as an overhead status light came on. In response, everyone stood up and formed to lines in the center with Admiral Thrawn in front.

"Thirty seconds," the pilot stated.

There was a mechanical whine as the ramp lowered. Wind driven snow began to swirl into the bay as the ship raced for the center spire. Thrawn clenched his jaw in a partially successful attempt to keep his teeth from chattering in the subfreezing wind. In the orange and red glow of a setting sun, Admiral Thrawn could see several small figures moving across the white surface of the ring, like a tidal wave crashing against the shore.

"Ten seconds," called the pilot as they crossed over the ring of lower towers.

There was a distinct change in the pitch of the engines as the ship came to a hover inside the entryway.

The pilot counted down, "Five… four… three…" -Thrawn reached up and pressed the release for a rope, and sent it spiralling down to the ground- "two… one… Execute."

Thrawn sprinted down the ramp and propelled himself off the last step. As his back foot came off the durasteel, his hands enclosed the rope in a steel grip. Releasing it slightly, Thrawn slid to the ground, and took up station with a raised blaster. Seeing two approaching infection forms, Thrawn fired. Both exploded upon impact. Given the size of the cavernous space, they almost seemed anticlimactic.

All around him, Thrawn could hear, and sometimes see troopers take position in a relatively narrow circle. The Admiral stepped back slightly when a trooper with a shield and a blaster approached. Next to him and slightly forward was a man with a flamethrower strapped to his back and a sidearm on his hip. Using this pattern, the platoon made a slightly rounded v-shape as the men with shields and flamethrowers took the lead, and men with blasters and regular armor stayed slightly behind.

Seeing that everyone was formed up, the Lieutenant acted off reflex and barked, "Alright move out."

His men didn't skip a beat, but he did, and as they started to move he cast a look at the Admiral. Thrawn simply nodded his approval. He wasn't going to be overly critical when it was an order he would've issued anyway. Within seconds, Thrawn heard it. The slithering sound echoed through the large entryway and was intensified by the large duracrete-like walls.

"Easy gentlemen. We have faced them before. This is no different," Thrawn reassured the visibly uneasy men.

"Multiple contacts showing up on the motion tracker, behind and in front," reported the Sergeant from the briefing as he kept a half-eye on the sensor in his hand.

Everyone tensed even further as men started casting glances at the ceiling and behind them as they continued forward. The platoon made it halfway across the empty space before the first forms appeared.

"Contacts forward," reported one of the men as he pointed to a large mass of figures ahead.

"Roger, Weapons free," ordered the Lieutenant.

"Belay that, Lieutenant Quentin," Thrawn quickly countermanded, "Blasters only. Hold the torches."

The response was instant as the men fired on the advancing wall of green. Thrawn opened fire with his own blaster. The leading line of infection forms was cut down without so much as a second thought as they collided with the solid, hot wall of red light. However, the Flood knew no fear and continued their advance. Suddenly a laser streaked past within inches of Thrawn's head. The Admiral reflexively ducked as he found the combat form responsible. Several shots into center mass killed the being. Soon there was a steady thump as lasers collided with the shields. Over time the green walls, slowly but surely, began to rap around and close in on them.

"Sir, they're getting awful close," warned Lieutenant Quentin before addressing his men, "Forward, double time. We get bogged down and it's over."

The men picked up their pace as they met the hoard head on. The increased speed didn't allow for a response from the Admiral. Instead, he came up right behind the Sergeant leading the incendiary squad.

Thrawn grabbed the man's shoulder plate and yelled over the blaster noise, "Burn them to hell, Sergeant."

"Yes sir," the man replied a little too enthusiastically.

Over the blasters, a collection of shrill whistles was heard. Within a couple seconds, it was replaced by the sound of fire jetting out of the nozzles. Hundreds of advancing Flood forms were suddenly burned alive as the group continued its fight across the massive entry area. Slowly but deliberately, the men with shields or flamethrowers spread out so their aim covered all sides. This slowed the group by a little bit, but was a necessary compromise.

As the fight drug on, Thrawn noted with much discomfort that many of the combat forms wore the remains of Imperial Stormtrooper armor. He quickly filed away that discomfort for later, as cries of surprise and pain reached his ears. Looking to the left, he watched as an infection form tore into a trooper's chest. He turned back just in time to miss the Lieutenant shooting the condemned Private. The officer had seen enough to know there were fates worse than death. A flash of motion to the Admiral's right caught his eye. He looked over and saw a trooper with one of the shields struggling to keep a Flood form at bay that had latched itself onto his shield. Thrawn shifted his aim, and shot it several times. The result was a green mist that coated both of them.

The next hour and a half was a grueling test of will power more than skill as the troopers forced their way into the tower. Despite taking heavy losses, things became marginally easier as the passageways narrowed. The Flood also reduced their attack, seemingly content to hit the worn out group in open rooms and at blind corners.

"The bugs have gotten smarter," Lieutenant Quentin noted as he finished off a badly burned combat form.

"Yes, I observed as much in our Naval engagements with them," Thrawn agreed as he stepped over the dead remains of another combat form.

The group continued in relative silence as they fought their way to the center of the library. As the blast doors- at least that's what Thrawn assumed they were- hissed open, the group was met with several combat forms. Without missing a beat, seven different troopers, including Thrawn and Lieutenant Quentin opened fire. Each went down as they rushed forward in a rough V-shape. The beings' move was badly executed, but indicative of increasing tactical skill. The clock was ticking, and Thrawn really didn't want to be here when time ran out.

"Clear the room," Lieutenant Quentin barked.

"Torches, conserve your fuel. We'll need all we can to get out of here," Thrawn added.

Without so much as a "Yes sir", the troopers spread out across the circular room. Thrawn mentally logged the location and frequency of blaster shots as he visually scanned the room for himself. In the center of the warmly lit room was a round, six meter wide abyss that formed a perfect circle and went down for hundreds of feet. Suspended in the middle by seemingly nothing, and even with the floor was a large key-looking object known as the index. Looking up, Thrawn felt slightly lightheaded as he saw that the circular hole came down through the ceiling from the floors above.

Despite his awe, Thrawn knew that he didn't have time and unclipped a gas-powered cable gun from his belt. He gave the harpoon shaped end a twist to arm it, and attached it to the end of his blaster. As he approached the edge of the hole, Thrawn took aim at the inside wall of the hole in the ceiling. The Admiral came to a quick stop, steadied his hands, and fired. The cable zipped through the air and buried itself into the duracrete-like material. He gave it a test tug. Satisfied, Thrawn swung out across the hole in a very specific speed and direction. His hands wrapped around the cold, metallic index as he flew across the abyss to the other side. A jolt halfway through signified that the cable had slipped a few inches, and Thrawn was forced to swing his feet up in order to clear the edge. He landed awkwardly. Coming face to face with an attacking infection form, Thrawn was forced to drop the index to the floor and draw his sidearm. His blaster scratched and the form exploded, leaving pieces of itself all over the surrounding area. As he holstered his sidearm, the Admiral looked and saw the index lying precariously close to the ledge. He quickly picked it up and attached the object to his belt before dealing with the cable hooked to both his main blaster and the inner wall of the upper hole

"The index is secure. Let's move," Thrawn ordered as he motioned to a door off to his right.

"You heard the Admiral," Lieutenant Quentin echoed, "We're done here."

The Flood soon resumed their attacked as everyone forced their way down the maze of passages under the cover of flames and lasers. Yet it did not stop everything. Several troopers were shot while at least six were taken over by infection forms. One by one the troopers dropped and things became more intense. Several times, the Admiral would turn just in time to catch a form rushing toward him. At one point he was forced to leap to the side as one descended on the ceiling, only to end up ignoring it as another one leapt off the wall and at the side of his head. He was able to break its weak hold and blast it. However, the interaction did needlessly remind him to watch all sides.

As the grueling fight carried on, Lieutenant Quentin and the Admiral noticed one thing.

"Watch your spacing," the Lieutenant ordered as he physically pulled back one young Private, "Stay tight and we stay alive."

As if to highlight his point, one trooper with a flamethrower had gotten overzealous and allowed himself to get too far from the main group. Within seconds he was shot four times, swarmed by various forms, and reduced to a deformed and bloody mess on the floor.

"Keep it moving. We're almost out," Thrawn ordered as some of the men started to slow.

"This is Strike Team Delta. We have the package and are approaching the LZ. We need immediate fire support and pick up. Over." Thrawn stated to someone on the other end of his comm link.

"Copy that. Due to the nature of the threat, break for the plasma bridge. We'll cover you guys," replied the pilot.

"Understood. Delta out," Thrawn concluded as he armed a thermal detonator.

In one fluid motion, he put his comm link away with one hand, and pitched the detonator with the other. Within seconds, a group of Flood forms was blown to pieces and/or incinerated as the concussive blast tore through their formation. After an agonizing few seconds, they finished forcing their way to the door.

"Correct me if I'm wrong sir, but I hear the Flood has a nasty surprise waiting for them," Lieutenant Quentin declared as they came to a stop in front of the door, "You two get some charges on that door."

"Yes, Lieutenant, that would seem to be the case," Thrawn confirmed as he watched two troopers break rank with charges already armed and in hand.

"Firing… Now!" Called one of the troopers as he returned to the group and squeezed the trigger.

In response, the door was violently blown outward in a blast that warped its metal frame beyond recognition. The unit instantly rushed in and was met with a hoard of Flood forms. As they rushed at the group, hundreds of them suddenly exploded in isolated groups. The screech of heavy blasters turned every person's head toward the assault shuttle hovering just inside the cavernous space. Receiving a much needed moral boost, the squad and a half left alive rushed for the shuttle. The pilot used small movements born from years of experience to blanket the ground ahead of the strike team with anti armor and anti personnel lasers that ripped through the Flood line. As they approached the bridge, the craft gave it one pass with the guns before flipping around and lowering its ramp just off the right edge of the bridge.

Lieutenant Quentin and two other men took up security positions as they motioned everyone else onto the shuttle. Finally as the last men were climbing up, they too retreated into the safety of the deployment bay. The assault craft managed to put well over two thousand feet between itself and the tower before the rear door was even sealed in a display that redlined the engines, and border lined recklessness.

As the shuttle touched down in the hangar of the Conviction, Thrawn let out a small sigh of relief. With the index safely in hand, Thrawn could finally finish putting his plans into motion.


	20. Chapter 20

**Hey, everyone! It's been a while, and I promise that this isn't a notice that I am discontinuing the story. Instead it is finally a new chapter. I don't have too much to say except that this was quite interesting to write, and I would love to here what you all think (good or bad).**

 **So, without further ado, I give you chapter 20...**

* * *

 **(UNSC Infinity: the Maw)**

"Remind me again who this is," Admiral Hood requested as he let out a sigh.

"Captain Han Solo. He was an Imperial officer and fighter pilot who deserted the Imperial navy several years ago with his first mate Chewbacca," Leia explained, "Long story short, he ended up finding work as a smuggler for the Jabba the Hutt. However, an Imperial interdiction team forced him to dump thousands of credits worth of spice. This caused him to fall out of favor with his boss. When Solo was unable to pay back the worth of the shipment, Jabba put a bounty on his head. Vader helped put him in carbonite for the bounty hunter taking him back."

"As unfortunate as this is, what can he do to help us?" Captain Lasky quizzed.

"He has connections and a lot of them. He can get us hooked up with supplies that we can't get reliably otherwise," Leia explained.

"I see-"

Admiral Hood was interrupted by the chime of Vader's comm link.

"What is it?" Vader answered as he thumbed the activation switch.

"The Chimerea has returned, and the two defecting ships are making their approach through entry lane alpha," reported Admiral Piett.

"Good. See to it that our defectors get properly integrated. I will deal with the Naghori once I am finished," he ordered.

"Understood. Piett out," concluded the Admiral before closing the channel.

"Given the report of Captain Pellaeon, we don't have any ships left that are in any shape to be making extra runs. All of them are in need of repairs before we continue," Admiral Hood stated.

"I am well aware of that. I simply require myself and a Sentinel-Class Assault Shuttle to carry back the informant and the block of carbon," Vader acknowledged.

Across the holotable he could see Leia wince at the idea of Solo being called a "block of carbon", He chose to ignore it as the room fell into silence.

"What about medics? You'll need someone to be there when the body is unfrozen," Captain Lasky finally quizzed.

"I will unfreeze him here at the fleet where there is a full medical bay," Vader explained, "The system that froze him wasn't meant for people. I was forced to improvise with a prototype, industrial model. If something goes wrong, I want a fully equipped medical team available, not just a corpsman or two."

As Vader finished, unreadable glances were traded across the table. Finally, the Admiral nodded.

"Alright. We'll finish repairs here. Once you have the Naghori dealt with, go get Solo," Admiral Hood concluded.

With a simple nod, Vader turned and strode out of the bridge. As he made his way down the corridors, Vader did his best to suppress a sigh of annoyance. Nothing bothered him more than being ordered around. Of course, he could have left to get Solo on his own, and no one in the fleet could have stopped him. However, right now he needed to stay on good terms with the other Commanders. This meant knowing how to pick his battles and respect a blurry chain of command.

"I bet you're proud of yourself, Obi Wan," he mumbled to seemingly no one, "I'm using your teachings."

"Oh, very much," Obi Wan answered smugly.

Vader managed to resist the urge to turn around as he realized the voice was coming from all around him at once.

Vader couldn't decide whether he was happy or annoyed to hear some of Obi Wan's old smugness back. Within those three words, he could picture the amused grin on his old master's face. Vader chose not to care as he climbed into his fighter and made his way to the Chimerea. Right now he had work to do, and judging by the collective tension radiating off the ship, he had a situation to defuse.

"If you enjoyed that, you'll really enjoy the next several minutes," he grumbled, again, to seemingly nothing.

As he touched down in the main hangar, he was met with a hanger packed with Naghori. Around the entire perimeter of the group was a solid line of Stormtroopers. Each one held their blasters low. However, it didn't take the Force to tell that they were expecting a fight. Fingers hovered around triggers, muscles were tense, and feet were spaced just right so as to allow them maximum movement with maximum speed.

Mirroring their image, several Naghori let their eyes dart around the room as they to attempted to allow for instant, wide ranging movement. They had been forced to hand over their weapons upon boarding the Chimerea, but that didn't make them any less dangerous. Vader had seen this first-hand. Despite this, he doubted that they would waste their lives in a suicidal rush at a line of fully armed troopers either, especially when there was no where to go.

As he stepped out of his ship, Vader could see several Naghori subtly shift their bodies as they contemplated such a move. However, self-preservation took over, and they maintained their composure. Contrary to past arrivals, not one of the troopers even turned to address Vader as he approached the line. They had a task, and they intended to follow through with it.

A moment of tense silence reigned as everyone of the reptilian beings stared him down. Vader did not flinch but instead locked eyes with several of them. There were few things that intimidated Vader. These beings weren't on that list, nor would they ever be. Finally, an older looking Naghori with the scars indicative of a long, violent life stepped forward.

"I am Rukell, I have been chosen to speak for the tribes," he declared as several Naghori sidestepped out of the way.

"Then speak for them," Vader commanded.

"We lived and died to fulfill our duty. We served _you_ to pay back a debt that we owed. Entire generations of our people are dead. Few even got so much as a proper burial. We do not even know of their fates so as to remember them properly," he began with a rage that dripped off each word, "We showed honor. We gave our all. Yet, it was for a lie. It was to serve someone else's selfish ends. The Alliance did nothing to our people. However, in our time of need, the Empire did not help us. You hurt us. Your people stared us in the eye as they drove a knife into our back. We have no agreement with you. The only debts we owe are to Captain Pellaeon and Commander Skywalker."

Vader nodded. Every one of Rukell's accusations were true. The Empire had taken advantage of the Naghori's belief that they owed a life debt to the Empire, and more specifically, Vader. There was no arguing with that. However, having them under Luke's command was still good enough for their purposes.

"Captain Pellaeon and Commander Skywalker still answer to me, just as the men who kept your planet in a state of desolation did," Vader informed him.

"Yes, he informed us of as much. There is one key difference. Our orders will come from them only. You are relieved of your authority over us," Rukell declared with a finality that announced death as the only other acceptable option.

"Very well. If that is what you choose, then so be it. However, regardless, you will have to accept accommodations on whatever ships have room to take on your people," Vader advised the Naghori, "However, if any harm comes to the forces under my command, I will be forced to personally intervene, and unlike Skywalker, I have no moral qualms with reducing your numbers even further."

Rukell nodded his head in understanding. The warning was received loud and clear by everyone in the room. Satisfied that everyone understood each other, Vader wordlessly returned to his ship. Once he was alone in the space between the damaged Chimerea and the Executor, Vader let his his displeasure radiate through the force. After years of unquestioning loyalty from the men under him, the defiance emanating off Rukell especially annoyed Vader. It had taken huge amounts of restraint not to crush the Naghori's windpipe right there in the middle of the hanger.

As Vader touched down in the Executor's forward, portside hanger, he noted crewmen hustling to drag a fuel line from an assault shuttle twenty yards to the right of where he was putting his own ship down. Waiting for him was the senior deck officer. Despite his near perfect uniform, the bags forming under his eyes told Vader that he had stayed past shift to personally make sure the shuttle was prepared for him. Vader stepped out of his fighter and silently regarded the officer for a moment before starting for the ship.

"I trust that all is prepared as I have instructed," Vader stated as the officer fell in step slightly behind him.

"Yes sir. The ship is equipped for heavy cargo. The controls are set for single person automation, and the recall beacon was fixed into the system. Crewmen just finished fueling her a moment ago," the deck officer confirmed.

"Good," Vader acknowledged with a nod of approval.

"Is there anything else that you require?" the man asked expectantly.

Vader was sure that if the officer had a chrono on his wrist, he would have checked it as he asked.

"No. You are dismissed," Vader concluded as he came to a stop at the edge of the cargo ramp.

The man quickly, but crisply, bowed before rushing back across the hanger as fast as discipline would allow. Vader was left briefly standing at the bottom of the ramp as he realized the irony of what he was doing. He was going to rescue the man that he had previously condemned to death in everything but name. With a thin, humorless smile he marched up the ramp. Once inside, he closed the ramp and settled himself into the cockpit. Soon he had the engines fired up and was pulling out of the hanger.

"This is shuttle number 6-6-6 to control, clear and outbound," Vader stated over the comm.

"Affirmative 6-6-6, good hunting," acknowledged the crewman on the other end.

The rest of the flight was almost relaxing to Vader as he guided the small craft out of the Maw and into hyperspace.

 **(ISD Conviction: unknown regions)**

Thawn spun the index around in his hand as he stared at images of various art pieces in his quarters. Here, he was reasonably safe from the long arm of the Imperial Navy. Therefore he had a relatively long time to decide his next move. He knew that it shouldn't be too hard to pass through Imperial lines. With the Flood slowly overrunning the core, the Imperial's didn't have the resources to spare on chasing down a fleet. Therefore, at first glance, the most logical option was to make a speed run through their lines and move to the Maw. However, there were two problems with this plan.

First, he did not know how many of the ships would follow him that far. Keeping the index out of Palpatine's hands was quickly agreed on as a good idea, but that was different than fully defecting to the Alliance. As it was, he was already hearing whispers of Captains wanting to take the index and run deep into the unknown regions. There, they could restart while the rest of the galaxy consumed itself in a fiery intergalactic apocalypse. Unlike Vader, he had not had reason to spend years securing his men's loyalty, and changing out officers like worn out speeder parts.

The second issue was that he couldn't rely on Palpatine sticking to logic and letting him go. Thrawn had been around the man's oversized, insanity fueled ego to know that he wouldn't just let the fleet got quietly. It also wouldn't help that the loss of so many ships would seriously undermine the Emperor's authority in the eyes of the both the military and the public. Chances are that he would order all nearby ships to abandon previous assignments and converge on him, at his first turnpoint. Force knows that the man had enough Interdictors to trap all twenty plus of his ships.

After several minutes of thinking, Thrawn made his decision. For better or for worse, he would make it happen. He reached over and activated the comm link in his command chair.

"Captain, Have all battle group Commanders come see me in my chambers. I think I have decided our next move," he ordered.

"Right away, sir," acknowledged the Captain before shutting the link.

 **(Tatooine: twelve hours later)**

The dust shifted under twinkling stars as an unseasonably cold wind chilled the night air. Womprats and Tusken Raiders both scattered as their survival instincts warned of an impending storm. Some of the more senior Raiders briefly paused in confusion. Now was not the time for storms. This was the dry season, and not a cloud was seen. However, the wind told differently and years of evolution in a volatile landscape overwrote logic and they to scattered. There was a tension in the air, and a kind of electricity that seemed crackle with every grain of stirred sand.

What few saw was the human at the center of the storm. With his hood pulled over his head, the human appeared as a black shadow moving against a slightly lighter night sky. The darkside swirled around him, and he embraced it. Every measured step through the sand and rock radiated with the promise of death. Every step was one step closer to the realization of that storm. Only so long, could he contain the storm within.

After fifteen minutes of walking, Vader approached the massive durasteel door that closed Jabba off from the rest of the world. He knew enough to know that it weighed several tons by itself and could only be unlocked and locked from the inside. Hidden in it was a security eye- an electronic peephole, so to speak.

With a casual wave of the hand, he rendered the device useless. Then, he reached out with the Force. An invisible hand snaked its way under the door, as Vader slowly extended a hand of his own. A loud metallic screech was heard as he jerked up on the door. The door let out a thud as the pins held it down. Vader didn't flinch but increased the amount of force applied to the door.

 _Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!_

The pins sheared off as the door was pulled upward. As it slowly opened, Vader could hear cries of alarm as guards rushed to find out what was happening. With his free hand, Vader activated his lightsaber in time to deflect several shots to the legs. After several agonizing seconds, he had the door high enough to walk under without ducking. While still holding the door, he stepped through, as the blaster fire came to a temporary halt. Clearly, they were waiting until more of him was exposed. Vader let the door drop. His red lightsaber gave the large passage an eerie glow as the guards and him simply stared each other down.

"Fire! Fire!" finally yelled one of the guards in Huttese.

Instantly the room was illuminated in a much brighter shade of red as blaster bolts streaked toward Vader. It took little effort to bat away the hundreds of bolts, and Vader easily closed the distance between himself and the defenders. He used the Force to crush the windpipe on one guard, and toss two others into opposite walls. Several fell as their blaster bolts were deflected back at them. Another cried out in terror as both thermal detonators on his belt activated. The fiery blast reverberated down the length of the passage as several guards were either blown apart, incinerated, or thrown across the dirt floor. One summoned the courage to come at Vader with a battle ax. He split both the blade and the guard in half with one slice.

* * *

Lando watched from his post at the door as the pink skinned Twi'lek came sprinting through the entryway.

"He's here! He's here!" the man cried as he ran over to his boss.

"Who's here?" demanded the hutt as he was jerked from his sleep.

"Vader! He's here," the Twi'lek answered urgently.

At those words, the bounty hunters were separated from the other guests as they rushed out in hopes of cashing in on a multi million credit bounty.

"What!? Why?" he demanded with marginally less fear than his subordinate.

"We don't know. He forced open the door, and stormed in," the Twi'lek answered as he cast several nervous glances at the door.

"Who's with him?"

"No one. It's just him."

"Then kill him," Jabba barked.

"We're trying, but we can't stop him," the Twi'lek explained urgently.

As if to highlight his point, blaster shots and explosions mixed with terrified yells and shouted orders in a cacophony of noise that echoed from beyond the entry way. Across the room, Lando found himself silently praying that his disguise didn't get him killed in Vader's apparent lust for blood.

A minute or two later, several of those same guards came sprinting through the entryway. Staying true to his cover, Lando helped pull down the hidden, durasteel security door that closed off the room from the rest of the palace. After that, he gripped his own electrostaff as he resumed his post next to the door. He quietly activated the switch and pointed the end down toward where Vader's heart should be when he came through the door. Several of the guards and bounty hunters took up defensive positions behind cover, as others attempted to rush the Hutt out to his sand barge.

"This is why I'm a businessman, not a security guard," Lando quietly mumbled to himself.

The room fell into a tense silence as everyone waited. Outside, faint blaster shots could be heard. However, they were quickly silenced. One second passed. Two seconds passed. Three seconds passed. After ten seconds, the guards started looking at each other with looks of confusion and, if one looked hard enough at the right person, hope.

That flicker of hope was crushed as a red blade burned through the door. That same blade quickly and deliberately melted a circular hole in the door. Lando felt his body tense as he prepared for the inevitable. He reflexively ducked as the door was violently thrown inward. As he brought his head up, Lando made an easily dodgeable stab at Vader's chest. True to his reputation, Vader didn't sidestep the attack, but instead cleaved the weapon in half and sent Lando crashing into one of the wall supports.

Dazed but gratefully alive, Lando watched in amazement and horror as Vader made his assault on the throne room. Guards were thrown every which way. Blaster bolts were turned back on the guards that shot them. People were left gasping for air as they grabbed at the invisible hand wrapped around their necks. The fight could be described as little more than a massacre as Vader used the force to rip the weapons from most of the guards hands early on. Then like a phantom he was gone through the back passage, leaving nothing but the dead to speak of his appearance.

* * *

Vader easily dealt with the little remaining opposition as he marched down the back corridors of the Palace. He could sense his quarry in the force, moving toward the barge. Finally, upon forcing his way passed a sealed door, he came up on the wide gangplank connecting the barge to his palace.

"Jabba," he commanded as he stepped onto the wide piece of wood.

The group of guards turned with weapons raised as they put themselves between their leader and Vader. With a frown of annoyance, Vader waved his hand in a sideways motion. It translated to a Force blast that sent all ten of them tumbling all twenty feet to the ground. Vader was not surprised to sense little fear in Jabba. He was a criminal, but he knew the life he was in. He knew his number would come up eventually. What did surprise Vader was the sense of admiration that showed through.

"So, you finally did it," Jabba noted with a humorless chuckle.

"I did."

"Tell me. Does it give you pleasure?" the crime lord quizzed.

"What do you mean?" Vader aked with a raised eyebrow.

The exchange was throwing him off. Reaching out in the force, he searched for a sniper, approaching guards, or any other reason for Jabba to be buying for time. He found none, and so he waited for an answer.

"Does it give you pleasure to do what you have wanted to do for years?" Jabba clarified.

"Much."

"I'm sure your mother would be proud," Jabba stated in mock admiration.

In a flash of anger, Vader grabbed the Hutt with a Force choke that nearly killed the Hutt instantly.

"What do you know of my mother?" he demanded as his eyes burned an almost red color.

Jabba gasped as he attempted to chuckle again, "You- you don't think… a kid daydreaming about being a Jedi… wouldn't attract my attention? I've been watching you… I've been watching for a long time… I know why... you why you fell... I know what did you in... what made you hunt down... hunt down those who gave you a home... maybe better-better than some… Some Jedi."

The Hutt fell silent and Vader clenched his fist in rage. The Hutt's neck cracked as his windpipe was crushed. Vader was shaken and in such a rage that he didn't even bother to toss the Hutt over the side with his guards as he had planned. Instead he marched back to the throne room. He needed to grab the Wookie and leave before the place consumed him.


	21. Chapter 21

**Hey everyone! Long time, no see. Sorry it's been so long since I've updated. I promise that I haven't forgotten the story. I've just had a lot going on. Anyway, excuses aside, I would love to know what you think of this chapter. I really had a hard time putting it together.**

 **Also, one final note before I let you read... There are a few of you that have asked about Boba Fett and Mandalorians in general. You have wanted to know if they will be in this story and have asked that they do take a role. Unfortunately, I doubt this is going to happen. I'm already having a hard enough time keeping up with the subplots, I really don't need another. I'm sorry, but that's how it is.**

 **Anyway, with the sad news out of the way, I happily give you Chapter 21...**

 **(ISD Krayton: UNSC Space)**

Captain Cordell stared out the viewport. He let out a sigh as he took a gulp of caf from the mug in his hand. With nothing to do but sit in hostile territory and wait for further orders, he and his crew were tense but bored. Things had fallen into a relaxed pace as the Captain pulled them off yellow alert, but frayed nerves kept anyone from truly relaxing. Officers and enlisted men alike were always on edge. They were always waiting for the next shoe to drop. However, it never came. They never had to leave and they were never contacted. The result was a tired crew with a poor collective mood and little to do. Supposedly, Admiral Thrawn had another mission for them, but that message had been days- no weeks- ago and since then there had been nothing. If word didn't come to them within the next three days, they would have to return to Imperial space regardless of orders.

"Captain!" called Commander Tollauc as he hurried over, "We have a flashcomm from Admiral Thrawn."

The excitement in his voice was obvious as he passed over the data pad. Equally excited but better at hiding it, Captain Corbell calmly grabbed the data pad from the officer's hands. His eyes whipped back and forth as he read the message.

" _Priority Code: Alfa_

 _To: All 7th fleet ships- acting OICs_

 _From: Grand Adm. Thrawn_

 _Orders:_

 _Break down in Central Command_Situation unknown_ Possibility of hostile forces using Imperial equipment_Maintain radio silence_Rendveous at 226.79 / 543.84_ (End message)"_

"And there's the other shoe," he mumbled as he finished reading.

"What happened?" the Commander asked.

Under Imperial policy, flashcomm were for the Captain's eyes only unless he chose to share the information. At that point, it was still to be kept on a need-to-know basis.

Captain Corbell ignored the question as he began issuing orders.

"Sound general quarters. Recall all sentry craft, and begin a full sensor sweep," the Captain barked.

He made his way to the holotable as his orders rippled through the crew. On every deck, passageways were flooded as crewmen raced to their stations. Within minutes the ship was coming alive as she prepared for her return to Imperial Space.

 **(UNSC Infinity)**

Luke didn't need anyone to tell him that Vader was arriving. He and every other force user was summoned by the sudden darkness that enveloped the system. Vader was definitely back and something was wrong. At first, Luke felt unchecked rage. The intensity of which threatened to choke out everything else. However, on his way to the hanger, Luke gently reached out with the force. He expected to be forced out of his father's mind by way of sheer reflex. From what he had picked up, revealing one's true emotions was against everything the Sith stood for. Instead, like Ahsoka before him, Luke was allowed past some of Vader's mental defenses. What he found was a mess of hurt, anger, and regret that were mixing into a mess of volatile feelings.

Rounding a corner, Luke nearly collided with Ahsoka. The former Padawan barely missed a beat as she fell into step next to him.

"Do you sense that?" Luke asked with a shiver.

"Vader?"

"Yes. I've never felt him like this. In all of my encounters, this is a first," Luke confirmed.

"This much rage… I've felt this before, but it wasn't in Vader, or Anakin," Ahsoka answered with a frown.

"Well who was it?" Luke quizzed as they entered the hanger.

Ahsoka didn't answer at first Looking over, Luke watched her eyes seemed to glaze over slightly. In them, he could almost see the lightsabers and hear the screams. In that moment, it was as though the weight of her life came crashing down.

"Maul."

The air seemed to escape Ahoska's lungs as her voice trailed off. Luke went to ask about the name, but stopped as more people gathered around the landing pad. Falling in next to them was Leia, Chewbacca, Kanan, Ezra and Rex. Front and center was Dr. Halsey flanked by two Imperial medics from the Executor, Admiral Hood, and Captain Lasky.

Within seconds of the last person arriving, Vader's shuttle entered the hangar. The mechanical whine of the raising wings was drowned out by the roar of the sublight thrusters as Vader put the craft down in the empty space. There were a few seconds of tense silence as the engines powered down. The silence was finally broken by the mechanical whine of the rear loading ramp dropping.

The first to exit was a visibly relieved Lando He quickly singled out Luke and Leia before running toward them. The three quickly exchanged hugs and greetings. However, he was quickly and willingly shoved aside as a solemn looking Vader appeared at the top of the ramp. With a silence and grace that only he could achieve, Vader guided the slab of carbon down the ramp.

Doctor Halsey failed to suppress a gasp as she caught sight of the frozen man. His face was twisted into an eternal expression of pain and horror that was only added to by the fingers. They looked as though they might claw through hell itself to save the body from the prison it had been sentenced to.

"I believe he is your responsibility, doctor," Vader announced as he stepped off of the ramp.

"Mother of God. How badly did you hate this guy?" Halsey asked as she stepped up to examine her patient.

"I didn't per say. While he was a thorn in my side, but I held no personal vendetta. I save those for the people who deserve them," Vader answered matter-of-factly.

There was no attempt at justification, minimization, or other deflection of what he had done. There was only cold, hard facts. He didn't need to justify what he did. What's done was done.

"I'd hate to see you deal with a personal matter," Halsey mumbled as she kneeled down at the controls.

"You should see the place I took him from," Vader retorted.

Then without another word, he turned on his heel and made his way back to his ship. He didn't look back as he climbed the ramp.

"Where are you going?" Admiral Hood demanded.

"I've delivered my end of the deal. You have your devices. Let me attend to mine," Vader declared.

Not waiting for a reply, he punched the button to raise the ramp and made his way into the cockpit. No one attempted to stop the former Sith as he powered up the engines and no one batted an eye as he shot off into the empty void of space. In fact, for the Jedi, it was a welcome departure. At least then there would be a buffer between themselves and the mire of darkness.

As the shuttle took off, Dr. Halsey let her hands and eyes wander across the control panel on the side. Finally, unable to find what she was looking for, she turned to toward the group of onlookers.

"Lando Calrissian, a word please," she requested.

Lando didn't miss a beat as he came forward. Halsey motioned him in close and cast a nervous look at Leia and the Wookiee standing next to her.

"Yes ma'am?" Lando acknowledged.

The refined purr in his words made Halsey cringe. There were few people she had ever heard use that tone, and none were pleasant.

Shaking it off, she quizzed, "Where's the readout for his vitals?"

"There is none. Vader forced us to use our freezing system, which isn't designed for people. It was designed for cargo on deep space flights," Lando explained before giving a backward look of his own, "It's unlikely, but he could be dead for all I know."

Doctor Halsey let out a sigh as she mentally processed the business man's statement.

"You put a lot on the line for a potentially dead man," she finally observed.

"He wasn't dead when he was taken away. Besides, it the least I could do," he answered with a frown.

Halsey nodded her head as she began pressing buttons. She knew the story, and the man was right. This was the least he could do.

"Let's hope it was worth it," she stated as the keypad gave a chirp.

In response to her commands, the carbon mask over Han's face began to glow red. Within a matter of seconds, that glow traveled across his whole face, across his torso and down the legs, before finally travelling up into his hands. Leia broke rank and sprinted over as she caught sight of the carbon thawing.

"This is where I worry," Lando explained as the carbon began to glow red from heat.

"How is he?" Leia demanded as she approached.

The worry in her voice was impossible to miss.

"We won't know for a while," Halsey answered as Lando lead the princess back.

Two Imperial medics quickly filled the space where her and Lando had been standing. As the space around his face cleared, Halsey was surprised to find a man at peace. His face was no longer contorted into an expression of horror, but had relaxed under the carbon. His eyes were not open in shock, but instead were closed as though he was simply taking a nap.

Without skipping a beat, the senior of the two medics reached down and began probing for a pulse. After a few seconds, he looked up at Halsey.

Lando let out an audible sigh of relief. A grin instantly appeared on Leia's face as she turned to Chewy. The two joyously hugged. However, the embrace was cut short as the medics began to lift Han onto a hover stretcher. Lando was replaced by Luke as the group made their way out of the hangar and toward the medical bay. On the way, Han began to stir.

"Wh-where am I?" he asked with a groan.

"The UNSC Infinity," Halsey answered matter-of-factly.

"The 'UNS-' what?" Han's head turned back and forth as the tried to look, "I can't see."

The panic was plain to see on his face.

"Carbon sickness. It'll pass," Leia reassured him before mumbling, "Or at least it should."

With the exception of his eyes, Han's whole face seemed to light up with the sound of her voice. However, before he could say anything, Chewbacca cut in with a series of excited grumbles.

"Chewy? Chewy is that you?" Han asked hopefully.

Another set of excited grumbles emanated from the Wookiee.

"Ya… I-I missed you too," Han agreed.

At that moment, one of the medics produced a small needle and jabbed it into Han's arm.

"Ouch! Watch where you're sticking things," Han snapped.

"Don't worry Solo. I put it right where I wanted to," the medic answered with a smug grin.

Han's vision started to clear and his face twisted into a glare.

"Hey you're-" the drugs started to take effect and Han's face glazed over "You're a-a… Hey, Leia? Leia, what's a UNSC?"

By this time, they were approaching the medical bay.

Leia pushed her way between Halsey and the two medics so that she was even with his face.

Leaning down, she spoke softly in his ear, "I'll explain everything when you wake up. Until then, here's something for you to think about."

Before he could respond, she wrapped him up in a tight embrace. The air was threatened to vacate Han's lungs as Leia planted a kiss on his lips.

"Well… that's def-definitely something to dwell on," he agreed with a weak grin as she laid him back down.

While Solo laid there grinning like a drunken idiot, Halsey struggled to usher the group toward the door. As they neared the door, she made the mistake of touching the Wookiee. Chewbacca let out an outraged roar and spun around. He had his hands halfway around Halsey before Han stopped him short.

"Chewy! I'll be fine… You- y- jeez doc, what'd you give me?... You Chewy, won't be fine if you kill someone," Han snapped as he fought against the sedative.

Chewbacca removed his hands as he let out a half-hearted protest.

"I-I don't give a damn wha' you think. Now… Now, get out of here," Han commanded.

Chewbacca grumbled under his breath some more but allowed himself to be lead out of the medical bay without further incident.

 **(ISD Executor)**

His body hurt. His past hurt. His present hurt. Hell, at this point, all prospects for the future hurt. For Vader, everything hurt. He saw it all. He felt the pain. Memories long since buried were rushing forward. Voices long since faded away came rushing back into his consciousness. His time as a slave. His time as a Jedi. His time as a Sith. He remembered it all. In his meditation chamber, everything seemed to blend into one black cloud of darkness and suffering. There was no rage. There was no power. There was nothing that made the dark side so potent. It was just raw, painful emotion. Vader slowly turned his lightsaber as he contemplated his options.

"Was it worth it?" Vader asked himself, "Was it worth the pain? Was it worth the blood?"

Vader continued to study the black and silver object as Jabba's words echoed through his head.

"Does it give you pleasure?"

Those words… they were so simple. Yet they had cut through Vader in ways that his master could have only dreamed of. They were so simple, but they commanded so much. They required so much to answer.

"Peace is a lie…" he began to mumble.

"There is only passion," interjected another voice.

Vader's eyes widened briefly at the sound of his old master.

"Through passion I gain strength," Vader finally continued.

"Then what?" Obi Wan quizzed.

"What?"

"What happened when the passion runs out? What happens when all of your strength fails?" Obi Wan elaborated.

"I find it again," Vader responded instantly.

"There are some things that strength can't touch. There are some wounds that even the best doctors can't fix," Obi Wan stated calmly.

"So I've noticed," Vader grumbled.

"In all of my years teaching you, that was my biggest mistake," Obi Wan noted, "I never did teach you what to do with your emotions."

Vader allowed a bitter smile.

"So many warning signs… So much that could have changed," Obi Wan continued with a sigh.

"So much that wasn't your fault," Vader cut in, "You did what you could. I hold no grudges for what you did. Just promise me this…"

Vader trailed as he attempted to find the words.

"What?"

"Promise me that Luke doesn't repeat our mistakes," Vader requested.

"I will. I swear it," Obi Wan agreed.


	22. Chapter 22

**Hey everyone! Well, it took forever, but I finally got the next chapter finished. As I was writing, I got to thinking, and looking. This story is officially entering the back third. Thank you to everyone that has read this and stuck around. I know it stretched suspension of disbelief in a few spots, but we survived. :)We are almost done. This is the last build up before our attack on byss.**

 **That said, I would love to know what you all think. Is there anything that needs fixed? Is there anything you guys particularly like? Let me know, I would like to hear from you.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you chapter 22...**

* * *

 **(Home One: A few days later)**

Leia stared at the twinkling stars of the maw. Off in the distance, she could see the event horizon of a black hole. It's radiant perimeter stood out sharply from the black void that it contained. From nearby, she watched as an Executor-Class warship slowly appeared. It's dagger shaped hole appeared as a silhouette as it drew closer. She knew that there was at least two others hidden back behind it's super structure- one interdictor and one Imperial-Class. These were their new allies. The same liars and murders that she had spent her whole life fighting against were going to be the people that helped them win the war. The irony was sickening.

As she stared at the approaching ships, her thoughts drifted further away. For the last several weeks, she had had nothing to do but hide in her own thoughts. The Alliance Council had seen Vader and Ahsoka's joint recommendation for a suspension of command as sufficient cause to temporarily strip her of all command duties. The only things she had to keep her busy were holoboard games and a data pad briefing of the day's activities and council decisions.

Her musings were suddenly interrupted by a chime that echoed through her quarters.

"What is it?" she answered with a sigh.

As expected, Ahsoka entered with a data pad. Leia couldn't suppress a slow shake of her head as she crossed the room. The Jedi's warm colored skin and kind expression made it hard to believe that she was the former apprentice of the most evil man in the galaxy… well, third most evil. Tarkin and Emperor Palpatine took the top two spots.

"Is there anything of note?" she asked with a sigh.

Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders as she answered, "The Infinity finished repairs on its slipspace drive. The Shadow of Intent and Executor are both finishing up their repairs. We have one more battle group due to arrive tomorrow. At that time, we'll put final touches on our plans for Byss and the Flood. Also, Solo is expected to get the all clear from doctors tonight. He's due for a full debriefing in three hours. I think that the Council needs a representative there."

As she finished, Ahsoka handed Leia the data pad that she was holding. Leia immediately took it and began reading.

"They're reinstating me?" Leia asked with obvious disbelief.

"There's no reason not to. I've heard you comment on the reports. Even after trying to kill your Father-"

"He's not my _father,_ " Leia corrected sharply.

"-My former master," Ahsoka picked up, "Your ideas and reactions were more emotionally and tactically sound than his ever were."

"I imagine that that doesn't take much," Leia scoffed.

"No. However, not all darkside users are totally irrational. Truthfully, turning to the dark side mellowed him out," Ahsoka explained.

"It did?"

"Yes. It makes sense if you think about it," Ahsoka took a seat as she dug up carefully buried memories and bits of knowledge, "From before I met him, all the way up to his fall, Vader was always going. He was always trying to save someone. When it wasn't me or the men under our command, it was Obi Wan. When it wasn't any of them, it was Padme or Palpatine. Day in and day out he worked. He measured his success by how many droids he killed and how many people he managed to save. There was little rest and little time to collect himself."

"If Anakin was so intent on saving people, why did he fall?" Leia quizzed.

Ahsoka rolled the question around in her head for a second before answering, "Skywalker was willing to go to any lengths to save those that he cared about. He was willing to bend rules… push the limits of his power… and, on rare occasions, hurt those who got in his way."

"The ends justify the means," Leia reasoned.

"Yes. Unfortunately, that's a slippery slope," Ahsoka confirmed.

Leia didn't say anything at first. If she was honest, she had not expected a life story like that. According to Ahsoka, Vader wasn't always the harbinger of death. He wasn't always the one taking life.

"I'll admit, I expected to hear about someone who craved power, and who didn't care," Leia admitted.

"I did," cut in a voice from the doorway.

Both women jumped as they turned to the open doorway. As she glared at the man, Leia silently berated herself. She had gotten so caught up in her conversation with Ahsoka, and done it so quickly, that she had forgotten to shut the door.

"What do you want?" Leia demanded.

"I was here talking with the council, when something happened. Your presence is requested on the bridge," Vader answered flatly.

"What 'something'?" Leia quizzed as she rose from her seat.

"I don't know. However, they want Ahsoka up there as well," Vader added.

Ahsoka frowned.

"Why didn't they comm us directly?" she questioned.

"I was on my way up. They requested that I get you two on the way," he explained.

"I see," Ahsoka answered with an unconvinced frown, "We'll be up there."

"Good."

Then, like a phantom, Vader disappeared. By the time Leia and Ahsoka left the room, about two seconds later, the Sith was nowhere to be seen. Deciding that there wasn't time to find him, the duo made their way to the bridge.

 **(ISD Conviction: "North Gate Entrance", the maw)**

Admiral Thrawn was distracted from his ship's own firefight by a flash of light off the starboard side. Several kilometers off the starboard side, the Credence put a violent end to it's own battle. Having managed to angle itself above the other Star Destroyer, the Credence made use of its newest weapon. What appeared to be a blue spot light connected the two ships. Two seconds later, the light energized, and instantly a massive explosion ripped apart its adversary. Admiral Thrawn had seen the weapon in action, but seeing the results on a fully shielded target threatened to take his breath away.

In the span of a two seconds, the laser had cut through the ship's shields and armor, before continuing down through eight of the ship's decks. The heat from the laser had triggered explosions in both the forward armory and freshly topped off fuel storage. Before anyone could know happening- let alone order an evacuation- a chain reaction of explosions had hacked the Imperial-Class warship in half lengthwise. Even as he focused on other areas of the battle, Thrawn couldn't help but admire the twisted beauty of the situation. Even minutes after the initial chain reaction, his ship was still glowing orange from the fiery blasts. For the longest time, secondary explosions continued to throw the twisted remains of the ship in every direction. At one point, Thawn even observed an entire main thruster skip across the Conviction's topside hull.

Despite that scene of destruction, and a couple others of similar magnitude, discipline kept Thrawn focused. He had not come this far to be denied victory by way of distractions. Convincing his crew ( including some ISB and Intelligence officers) to follow him had been the surprisingly easy part. He simply told the truth, and provided irrefutable evidence to back himself up. Countless expeditions into the unknown regions had forged a durasteel trust between him and the men of the seventh fleet. They knew his judgement was sound, and his decisions well thought out. As such, they were more willing to believe and follow him, even if they didn't like it.

The battle groups from the black fleet had been harder to convince. However, he had forged friends. Not many of the career officers were fond of him, and Thrawn had never attempted to remedy that. Instead, he cultivated the respect of their subordinates- the silent, often forgotten about, majority on a warship. Through reputation, and years of planetside conversations, Thrawn had laid the seeds of loyalty. In his own way, he had quietly built a personality cult under the noses of Palpatine, Yularen, and Isard without knowing if he would need it. However, that work paid off in shadow of the Halo ring. Men and women, once willing to die for the power drunk emperor, were now willing to put a laser in his head should Thrawn command it. With entire crews of enlisted men threatening to mutiny (and even a couple going that far) Thrawn had found it only marginally harder to convince their superiors. Of course, he had found it hard to pass through Imperial lines. Palpatine had sensed his deception, and Loyal officers were quick to attempt interception. Yet, he was able to out think them, and in some cases flip their loyalties. However, his success was spotty, and only time would only tell his success rate in those endeavors.

After an hour and a half of hard fighting, Thrawn finished overpowering his enemy. Within the expanse of twisted metal and floating bodies was one last Executor-Class Star Destroyer. In spite of its size, the ship looked pathetic in Thrawn's eyes. Fires raged from every corner of the ship, while those that had been put out left long jagged cuts in its dagger shaped hull. Shields were non-existent and a fighter screen wasn't an option. Most of her heavy and medium turbolasers had been forcibly silenced by a combination of bombers and concentrated fire from at least four different ships. Outbound communication from the primary bridge had been silenced a half hour earlier, and the main thrusters were either destroyed or only worked part of the time.

"Captain, hail the ISD Hunter. I wish to speak with Admiral Lauchlan," Thrawn ordered.

"Yes sir. Stand by," the Captain answered crisply.

There was a moment of silence as the Captain worked with the communications officer. Pent up stress threatened to eat through Thrawn's patient demeanor as he waited for the two. However, he managed to crush down a potential outburst as he leaned back in his command chair.

"We're through," the Captain finally declared.

"Put it up on the viewscreen," Thrawn commanded.

The Captain nodded as he turned to the other officer. In response, the officer pressed a couple buttons. Above the front viewport, Thawn watched the symbol of the Imperial Navy flash by before being replaced with the image of his worn and injured enemy.

"Admiral Lauchlan, it's a shame that it has come to this. You showed much promise," Thrawn started with genuine regret.

"It is," the battered human agreed with a solemn nod, "I never thought such an exemplary officer as yourself could fall so far."

"We each made our decisions Lauchlan. There's no reason to attempt seizing the moral high ground," Thrawn calmly rebuked.

"I don't need to. You are the one that turned coat," the Admiral retorted.

Thrawn cringed in spite of himself as he watched the Admiral cough violently. The pain in his eyes was evident as he covered his mouth. Even with the hand over his mouth, Thrawn saw the blood that was coming up. The man had clearly suffered a major internal injury.

"I see no sense in gloating or debating. What's done is done. I am presenting you one last chance to surrender. Turn over your remaining crew, and vessel. I have the means to provide food, shelter, and medical care," Thrawn declared.

Thrawn watched as the Admiral's mind kick into overdrive, even as his eyes glazed over. Lauchlan was tired. He wanted out. Like any other rational person, death wasn't on his wish list. Yet, he wouldn't surrender. Thrawn knew this. He knew the man's culture. Three years as the man's CO had taught him the man's personality and loyalties. Three years had taught Thrawn his abilities, and his knack for blind loyalty.

Lauchlan finally answered as he locked eyes with Thrawn, "I'm sorry, sir. What's done is done. If I have to die, then so be it."

"Very well," Thrawn acknowledged with a slight nod, "You have made your choice and so have I."

The Grand Admiral refused to break eye contact, even as he motioned for the officer to cut the transmission. If he was going to kill a friend, he was going to have the honor to look him in the eye as he did it.

The Captain and gunnery chief turned to him expectantly as the screen went black.

"All ships fire on the Hunter," he ordered before addressing the Gunnery Chief, "Concentrate fire at point five-five-three."

The officer nodded and gave the orders. If the man wondered about the oddly specific orders, he didn't show it as he worked. For that Thrawn was glad. He fell into a solemn silence as the ship was wrapped in a blanket of orange and white. For her living crew, death had been as quick as it had been certain- just as Thrawn wished.

As the last lights of the explosion died away, Thrawn gave his next orders, "Have all ships retract fighters and fall into tight formation. Executors are to take up station immediately behind the Conviction."

The crew went about their work as though they were still Imperials. While they were no friends of Palpatine, each person appreciated the value of discipline. Even when all else falled away, they would have that. Discipline and duty would be two things that every officer and enlisted man would carry to his grave. Now, stepping into a lion's den, this was more important than ever.

 **(ISD Executor: twenty minutes later)**

Admiral Piett calmly directed the Executor's course as he listened to the reports coming in from his crew. The layer of black holes between himself and the issue made things difficult, but not impossible. If he could put his nose out into the entry path, he might be able to pick up what he needed. As the ship moved into position, Piett watched as the Infinity began to fill the upper left side of his main viewport.

"Sir. There's a power spike in the Infinity's bow," reported a crewman.

"Understood."

Even without the report, her intentions were clear. The Infinity had four MAC guns and a choke point. If things went south, she was going to make that tight space count.

"Reverse thrusters. Raise power forty percent," he ordered.

The response was quick, and Piett found himself thankful for the nearby bulkhead as his ship groaned to a stop. As soon as he was steady, Piett made his way to communications station.

"Contact Infinity," he requested.

"Yes sir."

The man worked with a couple dials, spoke a couple words into his headset, and then turned to the Admiral.

"She's standing by," he declared.

Piett nodded as he pressed the button in front of him.

"This is Executor to Infinity: We're as far in as I'm willing to go," he stated.

"Understood. Are you receiving anything else?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

Piett didn't answer at first as his eyes wandered across the bridge.

Upon having his answer, the Admiral answered, "They're still working. With all of the interference, it may be tricky to get much more than the garbled signals we were receiving."

"Alight. We'll keep you covered. Infinity out," the Admiral concluded.

With the transmission dead, Piett carried on with the hardest part of his job… waiting. It wasn't until a couple minutes later that answers began to come in.

"The radio transmissions were definitely Imperial, but coded differently," the Captain explained.

"Considering the amount of turn coats we've had, this doesn't surprise me," Admiral Piett noted before quizzing, "What was the situation?"

"From what we could tell, they got jumped on immediately after coming out of hyperspace," the Captain explained, "Both sides were taken by surprise, and the Commanding Officers were forced to turn a combined ninety-three warships with no warning."

Admiral Piett's eyebrows shot up.

"No Imperial contact for weeks, and now they're falling all over themselves to get to us," he commented.

"Well… Uh… not exactly sir," the Captain corrected, "There appears to have been an outbreak in hostilities between the fleets."

"Which side is succeeding," Admiral Piett quizzed.

"We can't tell. With our proximity to the black holes, their transmissions are too spotty. We can't even determine the officers commanding the battle," he replied.

"Alright. Keep me updated," Piett acknowledged.

"Yes sir," the Captain concluded before returning to his duties.

The next several minutes were silent as the crew continued to work. Every so often an update would break the silence. In the long run, it was nothing of severe consequence. The first fleet had fallen silent. Admiral Piett silently marked them off as KIA. Now the second group was coordinating a formation to enter the Maw. After that report, things were silent again. It wasn't until an hour later that the silence was broken again.

"Admiral, we're being hailed," called an officer.

Piett was midway over, when the officer diverted him to the holotable.

"You're going to want to see this in person," the man informed him.

With a sharp, precisely executed course change, Piett found himself at the table pressing keys. He was instantly rewarded with the last person he expected, and- given his status with the empire- wanted. The crisp, white uniform; blue skin; and piercing red eyes made misidentification impossible.

"Admiral Thrawn, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Piett asked as he swallowed his worry.

"Admiral Piett," the Admiral purred, "Tell me. Where is he?"

"I'm sorry?"

"You know who I'm talking about… Where's Vader?"

Admiral Piett feigned sudden understanding before replying, "He's out of communication for the moment," -Piett turned away to address the officer that had appeared beside him before turning back to Thrawn- "and if you like that flagship of yours, I would stop it before you round the last bend."

Thrawn gave a dismissive wave, but issued orders for a stop nonetheless.

"I'm no fool, Admiral. I wouldn't come this far, only to be blown away by an Admiral that I've never met," he replied with a predatory grin.

"Why are you here?" Piett demanded.

"Simple. I have my crew and ship, plus seventy-eight others that wish to defect," Thrawn answered.

Despite his relaxed tone, Piett saw his face harden. Clearly, this was not the Chiss's prefered move. Admiral Piett's own eyes turned to saucers as his mind wrapped itself around what he was hearing.

"'Seventy-eight warships?!"

"Seventy-eight Imperial Victory, Imperial, and Executor-class warships," Thrawn confirmed before adding, "One way or another, I am moving on Byss. If you and your rebels wish to be involved, I suggest you make your decision quickly."

Admiral Piett's mind began to race as he processed the information. On top of that, he thought of the man's attitude. Thrawn was calm, but urgent. His face said that nothing was wrong, but his eyes said that everything was wrong. His grip on the command chair was white knuckle. He was tense. He was ready for a fight.

"Well, Admiral?" Thrawn prodded.

"Very well. Tell your fleet to hold position in the dead zone. Bring the Conviction clear through," Piett commanded.

While he was technically a subordinate, it was clear that Thrawn was giving him the authority. An affirmative nod, confirmed Piett's judgement.

"Of course," the man agreed.

With that, his image disappeared as the transmission was cut.

"There's not enough caf in the galaxy for this," Piett mumbled before turning to the Captain, "Inform both the Infinity and the Home One what has happened."

"Yes sir," the man replied crisply before taking off.

"Oh! Hey! Make sure Vader is informed immediately," Admiral Piett called out.

"Yes sir."

 **(two hours later)**

Thrawn was tired. As his shuttle made its way to the Home One, he took advantage of the empty deployment bay. With no one around, Thrawn allowed himself to feel the exhaustion and stress weighing down on his body. While his body was practically immune to the crash that often followed too much caffeine, it wasn't immune to effects of long term sleep deprivation.

The Grand Admiral rubbed his eyes as he thought over his current situation. The number of moving parts was insane. The lines dividing friend from foe were blurred beyond recognition. Now he was turning into one of them. Thrawn chuckled at the irony. How many times had he scoffed at their "short sighted" defiance? How often had he shook his head in disgust as they made one suicidal move or another? How often did he find amusement in their desperate tactics? Thrawn smiled bitterly as he replayed various battles in his head.

"Oh the irony," he mumbled to himself.

His musings were interrupted by the sudden drop of his stomach. The Admiral stood up and smoothed his white uniform as the engines let out one last whine. The ramp began to lower, and Thrawn's mask of sophisticated calm was replaced. Waiting for him at the bottom two people that he knew well.

"Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger, it's been a long time," he observed.

Kanan bit back an answer, but Ezra hadn't quite mastered that level of discipline.

"Not nearly long enough," the kid retorted.

"I see that your manners still leave much to desired," Thrawn noted as he started forward.

Both Jedi quickly fell in next to him as he made his way across the bay.

"I'll fix my manners if you lose the smug expression," Ezra countered sharply.

"It's not smugness," Thrawn corrected, "It is contentment and some patience. I know what I'm doing. I am satisfied with my life's path. I have no reason for regret. I have no reason for brashness. The day is still young."

"You're satisfied, yet you're defecting… that doesn't work," Kanan noted.

"You're a Jedi. Contradictions and moral inconsistencies are your specialty," Thrawn countered with a dismissive wave.

The rest of the walk was done in silence as both Ezra and Kanan opted against rising to the bait. As it was, the walk alone contained enough tension without a conversation adding to it. Just like Vader, Thrawn received nothing but glares, suspicious second glances, and disbelieving scoffs from passing Alliance crewmen and soldiers. The Admiral was sure that he could hear a couple whispered insults if he listened closely enough. However, their opinions were irrelevant, and Thrawn had no wish or reason to listen closer.

After what felt like forever, Thrawn was ushered into a large, bleach white room with stadium style seats surrounding a large holoprojector. As he stepped inside, Thrawn immediately recognized several of the faces as Alliance political and military leaders. Every face from every "Wanted" file he had read in the past four years was in one room, including the latest one. Even without his suit, Vader was not hard to spot. He was the black shadow leaning against the far wall. Thrawn looked over, nodded, and then continued forward through the sea of staring eyes. For the first time in a long time, Thrawn felt genuinely uncomfortable in a crowd.

Thrawn was spared awkward greetings as the holoprojector hummed to life. Projected there, were the lead Imperial, Covenant, and UNSC officers.

"It's a wonder anything happens with this many equal rank officers," Thrawn mumbled to himself.

Mon Mothma made quick work of silencing the electric crowd, and called the meeting to order.

"Ladies and gentlemen I'm sure that you have heard of our new guest," she began as her eyes scanned the room, "May I introduce Grand Admiral Thrawn."

Thrawn noted the emphasis on "Grand" and "Thrawn", as he stepped forward. Clearly, the ex-Senator was trying to make a point. The crowd seemed to respond as hushed responses traveled through the crowd. The Admiral spotted a handful of pointed glares. Rising to the challenges, Thrawn wordlessly locked eyes with each dissenter until they were forced into backing down.

"He is defecting with the seventh fleet and elements of the black fleet," she added in a few seconds later.

"What's the Black Fleet?" demanded a voice from toward the back.

Thrawn smirked as he recognized the voice.

"That, Solo, is the Core Defense Fleet. It's mission profile and makeup are classified on the highest levels. Few have heard of it. Those that have, know little of it operations or size," Thrawn explained.

Solo nodded in mock satisfaction. Clearly he didn't like the answer he had gotten.

"What are its operations?" Admiral Hood quizzed.

"Currently, the remaining handful of ships are defending the Byss Security Zone," Thrawn answered matter-of-factly.

"How many ships are remaining?" the Arbiter pursued.

"Between thirty and thirty-five ships remain after factoring desertion," Thrawn stated.

"That's not too bad," Lasky noted.

"No, but the rest of the navy is packed into the core as well. One wrong move, and we'll have several hundred warships descending into a space about the size of our current staging area," Thrawn warned.

"What of the parasite? Surely that is their main priority," the Arbiter argued.

Thrawn shook his head as he ran his fingers over the index.

"If by 'parasite' you mean the Flood, that's a problem of its own," Thrawn declared, "The Emperor found a way to destroy them. However, it involves wiping out all organic life in the galaxy."

Muffled gasps and disbelieving looks flew across the room as everyone tried to imagine the scope of Thrawn's declaration.

"And where is your proof?" demanded Admiral Akbar.

"Here," the ex-Imperial stated as he produced the index.

"By the gods… there's another ring," the Arbiter gasped.

The awe and fear were obvious in his voice.

"There is, and I was suppose to fire it," Thrawn confirmed.

"That's impossible. The halo rings were all destroyed," Admiral Hood argued.

"No. This one remains."

"Then, Akbar, this is your proof. Only halo rings have this device," Hood confirmed.

"That means that we have two operations to consider. We must take Byss and destroy the ring, Both have to happen without taking forces away from the fight with the Flood, Admiral Piett summarized.

"The ring itself won't be to hard. A really big explosion should do it," Admiral Hood answered.

"How big?" Thrawn quizzed.

"The reactor off of a Star Destroyer should do it," the Admiral answered.

"If the Flood came from there, the Gravemind might also be there. Destroying it should hurt them severely," Rex reasoned.

"It could. However, no one knows. Every blast that has involved destroying the flood was big enough to kill off the entire infestation, not just the Gravemind," the Arbiter replied.

"No, but your warships were quite effective in ending the threat on Earth," Thrawn added in.

"How do you-"

"The UNSC haven't forgot what you did to them, Arbiter," Thrawn stated glacially.

"No we haven't," Admiral Hood confirmed.

"What exactly are you suggesting?" the Elite quizzed.

"Once Byss has been secured, your battlecruisers must fill the gaps in our lines. Glassing a planet shouldn't be a problem for them," Thrawn explained.

"It isn't. However, it takes time," the Arbiter warned.

"It does, but the alternative is unacceptable. I will not save this galaxy from fiery death, only to condemn it to another," Thrawn answered sharply before addressing the next issue, "The problem will be controlling the Imperial military upon Sidious's death."

At this point, Vader stepped into the center.

"What do they know of my earlier defection?" Vader quizzed.

"Nothing. I knew, but only because I didn't believe Piett would act on his own. As far as I can tell, everyone else assumes that you were on an outside op when Death Squadron defected," Thrawn explained.

"Then I will take control of the forces when Byss is seized," Vader declared.

"If that is the case, then you can not fight in the battle. If word of your treachery leaves the planet, then all that you have worked for will be destroyed," Thrawn informed him.

"I have no plans to engage Imperial forces. I have every plan to engage the Emperor directly. Given the minds in this room, I am certain that my tactical skills will not be missed," Vader replied dismissively.

Thrawn nodded as he played the scenario in his head.

"It could work. Some of the Moffs will protest, though," he agreed tentatively.

"Moffs are of no concern to me. I have dealt with them before," Vader countered.

"Yes, but with the Emperor dead, they will have the control. The repercussions of your previous dealings are what worry me," Thrawn argued.

"If I may, most Imperial soldiers hold little to no loyalty to the Moffs," Admiral Piett cut in, "The Moffs are a group of corrupt, stuck up snobs who don't care for the law or the Empire. Discipline and fear are the only thing that prevents wide scale insubordination."

"And it's not insubordination if a superior countermands their previous orders," Thrawn connected.

"Exactly."

With the large scale plan figured out, they launched into the finer details of the operation. This is where the Grand Admiral's current information became critical. For the next three hours, plan after plan was presented, debated, and eventually scrapped for some reason or another.

Moving on Byss was a relatively easy segment to plan. It was what to do afterward that bred frustration and worry. How did they redistribute their forces? How did they change command without affecting the effort against the Flood? Short of firing the ring, how did they even stop the Flood? Current operations were doing little more than stall for time. Thrawn's report made that abundantly clear.

Finally, in the midst of a heated debate between Thrawn and the Arbiter, Dr. Halsey appeared appeared in the projector screen. Admiral Hood stepped back and traded inaudible words with the doctor for a minute. He looked back at the group, then to Halsey. He said a few more things and then turned back to the rest of the people.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," boomed the Admiral's voice.

All relevant parties were instantly silenced. Admiral Hood gave a satisfied smirk as he gave up the floor to Dr. Halsey.

"Hello everyone. To those of you who don't know, I am Dr. Halsey. As you people have been dealing with the Imperials, I have been looking for a solution to the Flood," she explained.

"I trust that you have found something," Thrawn prodded.

"I believe so," she continued, "If the ring is destroyed, that makes things easier. I don't have to sever their connection with the Gravemind. However, I still have to break their connection with each other. On top of that, we still have to kill the hoard. Courtesy of the Imperial's extensive bio-chemical weapons program, I have what I need."

She paused for effect as several Alliance council members whispered urgently. Many shifted uncomfortably, while others turned to Vader and Thrawn with suspicious glances.

"How big?" Leia demanded.

"Big enough," Halsey sidestepped.

She didn't need to start a fight, and made a pointed effort to dodge accusatory questions as he continued her explanation.

"...Now the first viable base is the Blue Shadow Virus. For those who don't know, it was a CIS weapons project that made an airborne version of a waterborne terminal virus. In simple terms, it converted to a vapor easily and maintained its ability to wipe out most, if not all, sentient species in this galaxy. Judging by its makeup, it could work well on Covenant forces as well…"

Toward the back of the room, Han Solo attempted to listen as the doctor talked. While the conversation was progressing, he was trying to connect the dots in his head. Two hours earlier, an Alliance Sergeant had handed him a briefing packet with instructions to read carefully. One hour and one severe headache later, Solo had been forced to forgo the reading. Now he was wishing that he hadn't. As he was listening, the Captain was starting to wish that Vader had left him in Jabba's palace as a carbonite wall decoration. Han had just made the decision to check out, when a couple words snapped him to attention.

"That, Admiral, can be fixed with properties from another project," Halsey was explaining, "Bioweapons project 'Blackwing' proved itself highly adaptable, even beyond that of the Blue Shadow Virus. Its mortality rate was one hundred percent and death was well within twenty-four hours. If used in tandem with the other Virus, the Flood's interpersonal connections would be severed. Now, I can create the Blue Shadow with compounds I have present. However, in order to work with the other, I require a sample from-"

"No!" Han shouted.

Everyone turned to him as he rushed forward.

"Take it from someone who has seen the affects, you really don't want to do that," he declared.

"I'm well aware of the potential of psychosis pre-death. I am counting on it," Halsey argued.

"No. That mortality rate is false," he continued with ever paling features, "I was on a prison barge when the stuff got loose. They don't stay dead… They… They re-animate."

"Like the Flood?" Halsey quizzed.

Solo didn't immediately respond as he registered the looks being given to him. Most everyone seemed to think he had gone mad. Clearly, he was going to have to explain further.

"Vader," he bit out, "What exactly do you know of the ISD Vector?"

Vader tilted his head as he contemplated the question.

"I am aware that it went missing in space. I know that at the time, she was carrying tanks of the 'Blackwing Project' to a secure facility," he answered.

"I see. What if I told you that I know where it is located and what happened to it?" Solo continued bitterly.

"What happened?"

"The tanks leaked. The crew was 'killed'," Solo continued as put quotes around "killed", "They managed to come back as homicidal monsters later on. Judging by what happened on the barge, I would guess that it happened within a few hours."

"I see," Vader acknowledged with a troubled expression.

"Leaked tanks are a danger," Halsey noted, "So is re-animation. That's exactly what we don't want the Flood to do."

"However, if they come back with some kind of homicidal rage, they wouldn't be as dangerous to us. That is assuming they turn on each other," Piett noted

"Except the virus doesn't attack itself. Those who were infected never got eaten or otherwise mutilated," Han countered.

Halsey allowed a smug grin, "Survival instincts are relatively easy to override. In a virus they are primitive and hard to adapt. I've done it before."

"This wasn't. They learned quickly. They 'adapted' faster than a normal person," Solo continued to argue, "Even if you turn it on itself, how do you protect everyone that isn't Flood from something like a _leaked tank_?"

"This agent is a product of Sith alchemy. Put me on the ship and I'll get you a solution," Vader cut in, "I need to know what I'm dealing with."

"And if we lose you? Look, that Virus got through type A hazmat suits. It'll get to you, even in your armor," Han warned.

"I am but one man. I can be replaced," Vader answered firmly.

"No you can't," Leia jumped in, "Luke can't take on the Emperor himself."

At that, Vader seemed to back down.

"Alright. Doctor, is there any other options?" he quizzed.

"No… At least not reliable ones," she replied solemnly before offering, "Let me take a closer look at both a type A suit and your personal suit. I might be able to improve it."

Words and looks were exchanged as Han continued to press for a different solution. Many were uncomfortable with the idea. Many councillors objected, and others only agreed out of pressure. However, in the end it was summarized with one statement.

"I believe I speak for everyone when I say that we don't like this idea. The risks are great. However, the Flood leaves us with no ready alternatives. You have until Byss is secure to come up with a solution for transport and delivery. If none are present. The plan will be vetoed, and we will resort to other options," Mothma declared.

While the alternatives were currently unknown, the statement had its effect.

"Understood. I look forward to the challenge," Halsey acknowledged.

"Very good. Assuming that there is no other issue to discuss, this council is dismissed," Mothma concluded, "May the Force be with us all."


	23. Chapter 23

**Hey everyone! Well, it's taken forever, but we're finally here! This is the beginning of Sidious's end. The Battle of Byss has begun. This chapter is only part one of the battle, and it does have a few twists and turns that I think everyone will like. That said, I don't know. So, I would love to know what you think. Is it good? Is it bad? Is it...**

 **Anyway, without further ado, I give you chapter 23...**

* * *

 **(ISD Executor: In route to Byss)**

Luke watched as the blue and black tunnel of hyperspace slipped past on either side of the viewport. Reaching up, he wiped the sweat off of his forehead. As he watched the crew work, he soon got the feeling that he was the only nervous person on board. A simple touch with the force told him that he was wrong. However, their calm professionalism stood in stark contrast to his racing mind. Months of intensive work had brought him a long ways, but it still did not feel like enough. Luke was no longer embarrassing himself everytime he picked up a lightsaber, and he could consistently call on the force when required. Being able to lift an X-Wing was the rule now, not the exception.

Luke was pulled from his thoughts as he felt the cold embrace of his father's darkside aurora. Like usual he had felt it long before the blast doors snapped open behind him. Luke tracked his father's progress in the force as he marched across the bridge. The former Sith stopped once to address Admiral Piett, before coming to a stopped next to Luke.

"You're worried," Vader observed.

Luke knew that there was no hiding it from him.

"A little. For the Alliance and for me, this is the endgame for all that we have worked for. If we fail, there will be no second shot. There will be no place to retreat to," Luke explained.

Vader nodded in understanding before hardening his face.

"That's why you don't fail. Leave it all on the table. When you walk into that room, you can't hold back. There can be no questions. There can be no doubts. You do what you need to do, and nothing more. Forget the theatrics. Forget the battle outside. Forget everything," Vader instructed.

Luke didn't immediately respond as his mind tried to wrap itself around the current situation.

"That's going to be easier said than done," he finally answered, "I haven't been training nearly as long as you or the Emperor."

Vader nodded as he chose his words.

"Do you know why I chose you over someone like Ahsoka or Kanan?" Vader finally asked.

"I was the only force user that was known to be associated with the Alliance," Luke answered easily.

"No."

"No?"

"No. I chose you because of two things. The first was your power. You have the potential to be more powerful than either of those two could possibly imagine," Vader explained, "The second was that you don't have formal training. Jedi training is predictable. Every one of the styles taught by the temple was easy to identify. Certain forms lend themselves to being blended. Over time, a user finds a set of moves and forms that they are comfortable with. It allows them to fight smoothly. However, when combined with established forms, it makes them much more predictable, and predictability is fatal."

"My lack of formal training from the temple will make me less predictable?" Luke questioned skeptically.

"Yes," Vader confirmed.

"How?"

"You're fighting style is your own. Obi Wan, Yoda, and I gave you pointers. We taught you how to stay alive and not remove your own limbs. However, your style of defending an attack or striking at someone is totally your own. It borrows from different forms, but it is not those forms. I have even struggled to guess your next move," Vader explained.

Luke nodded in understanding as he contemplated the man's words.

"So, instead of fighting the Emperor, they're going to run the battle?" he finally asked.

"No. I'm leaving that to the people who are unafraid to get their hands dirty," Vader answered.

Luke went to say something, but was stopped short as Admiral Piett appeared.

"Lord Vader, the fleet is passing the first sensory net," he reported.

"Is there any signs that they are alerted to our presence?" Vader quizzed.

"No sir," the man answered crisply.

"Good. Bring us up to combat station," he ordered.

"Already done and standing by for re-entry," Piett informed him.

Vader nodded and dismissed the man. As the Admiral continued his work, silence reigned between Luke and Vader. Both had a million questions. However, neither one was sure they wanted to open the doors that came with each question.

"You left it all on the table once, didn't you?" Luke finally asked.

"I did," he confirmed with a slow nod.

As Luke formulated his next question, Vader felt the memories take him away. It all came forward at once. Chancellor Palpatine's disarming smile… Rivers of lava… The smell of fire... the burning of ash in his lungs... Padme's pleading face… the dead at the temple… The screams... oh, the horrible screams... ear piercing, and dripping with terror... All of it came rushing forward in a flood of images frozen in time. Then as quickly as they came, they were gone. The memories were replaced by a grey durasteel bridge and Luke's quizzical face.

Vader simply shook his head as he turned away. Those were doors best left shut. Instead, he simply shifted his weight between feet as his hand ran across the hilt of his lightsaber. At that moment, the bridge seemed to come alive. The sound of Piett barking orders gave Vader the out that he needed. The man didn't hesitate in taking it as he turned for the tactical board.

"What's our status," he questioned as he approached the Admiral

"All ships are green. Shields are up, and fighters are standing by for launch," he confirmed before adding, "Ten minutes to re-entry. Your ship and Luke's ship is fueled and ready."

"Very well then. Keep things tight and coordinate with the other ships," Vader ordered before turning to Luke, "Ten minutes to re-entry. Go to the bay, and prepare to link with your squadron."

Luke nodded and took off as fast as his orange flight suit would let him. As Luke exited the bridge, Vader took one last breath to focus himself. Then, he was off for his own ship. This left Admiral Piett as the sole leader of the fleet.

"It's just another fight. You've done it once, you can do it again," Piett reassured himself once Vader had left.

However, this did little to relieve the knot forming in his gut. As the minutes ticked by, the Admiral bounced from station to station as he personally ensured that everyone was prepared. Throughout the rest of the ship, everyone was just as tense as him. Yet, discipline continued its reign as men went about their work. Passageways were packed as all thousand plus crewmen came on duty. In armories, security teams were gearing up, while gear officers passed out blasters and other weapons. Elsewhere, gunnery crews inserted double checked systems and made last minute adjustments. In the hangers, final preparations were being finished while flight leaders briefed their men. In the ship barracks and vehicle bays, last minute briefings were done, as officers ensured that they were ready for the ground assault. In the medical bays, corpsmen and medical droids made preparations and last minute restocking as they prepared for the casualties that were sure to come.

Admiral Piett let out a sigh of measured relief as the last stations reported a green light status. That's when the helm's report chased away the newly found relief.

"Sir, we're approaching the entry point," the man called.

Piett caught his breath as his mind suddenly flooded with every worst case scenario of what could happen.

Tightening his jaw, Piett flushed out all emotion as he ordered, "Good. Raise shields and bring us out."

As the order was carried out, Piett stepped back to the tactical board. As hyperspace gave way to the all too real threats of realspace, he didn't need the tactical board to see the mess he was in. He had been to Byss. He knew what security was like. He knew of the sector fleet stationed there. He knew of the defense platforms that could shred the Executor single handedly. Courtesy of Thrawn, he knew of the Black Fleet. However, that failed to account for the ninety extra ships staring him down.

Piett nearly gasped as he watched the forward viewport flood with ships. The man instantly started barking orders as he stepped to the holotable. More orders flowed out as he punched in various frequency codes. He was soon rewarded with Admiral Hood, the Arbiter, and Thrawn. He didn't need Admiral Ackbar. That aquatic freak knew exactly what was going on. He was running support for Death Squadron.

"Gentlemen, we have a major problem," he declared as he tried to keep the panic out of his voice, "There's at least ninety extra ships we didn't account for."

Admiral Hood's eyes turned to saucers as he registered what the man was saying.

The Arbiter got a similar expression as he spoke, "By the gods! How did they-"

"That does not matter," Thrawn cut in, "There's no turning back. We stick to the plan."

As if on cue, the Infinity and her UNSC fleet appeared above and around Death Squadron. Piett watched as the UNSC Admiral turned around and took a look out of his view port.

"Thrawn, I'm looking at this fleet. Piett is right, we don't have the numbers," Hood argued.

Admiral Thrawn shook his head in annoyance.

"Admiral Hood, you of all people should know that numbers don't win a battle," Thrawn argued.

"No, but they do help," the aging officer snapped.

"Not if they can't move. Draw them in. I just received the ninety second warning," Thrawn commanded.

"And if this doesn't work?" the Arbiter demanded.

"Then we die with honor," Thrawn readily answered, "This is the endgame. We either succeed now, or condemn the universe to fate worse than death."

Both of the other officers nodded before each disconnecting.

"Thrawn if this doesn't work…"

Piett trialed off as he lost his words. With a sigh, he also disconnected the transmission.

Turning to the crew, he barked, "Forward at three quarter speed, and launch fighters. All bomber wings are to target the lead Executor. Target their forward shields. Callsigns Delta, Sierra, and Nova are to run escort."

Within seconds of that order, TIE bombers and their fighter escorts were pouring out of the hanger. Soon after, the space came alive as laser fire as the fleets began their clash. Above him, the Infinity took the lead. Her four MAC guns were soon adding to the chaos. Concentrated fire sent the lead ship recoiling as her shields struggled against the onslaught.

However, the favor was soon returned as the defending fleet unloaded with their own guns. Both the Executor and Infinity shuttered as lasers crashed into their shields. Point defense guns were soon coming alive as bombers came darting in.

Between the dueling capital ships, a smaller but equally important duel was taking place. Right in the middle of this mess was Luke. As the lead Executor filled his viewports, Luke reached into the force. He was hoping to find a safe path through the mess. He frowned as he found none. That's when his training as a pilot took over.

"Rogue Squadron, form up on me. We're going in low," he ordered.

"Roger, we've got your rear," crackled a voice.

Luke didn't respond flack rounds peppered the space around him. It was a constant fight for control as at least four different guns zeroed in on his squad. As blaster scoring painted his nose black, Luke realized that a trench run wasn't going to happen.

"Break off… I repeat, break off… New targets," he called as he jerked his ship up, "There's a nest of point defense batteries along the portside. Two degrees right of our trajectory."

"Roger, I see them," Biggs answered.

"Any TIE bombers going into that trench are going to be ripped to shreds. They can't take the beating. However, if we take them out, it's a wide open flight to the local shield generator," Luke explained as he jerked away from a passing TIE.

"I see it," responded another person.

"It's going to be tight. That's a lot of fire," Biggs added apprehensively.

"We don't have much of a choice," Luke argued as he flipped back around toward the enemy ship.

"This is Black One to Rogue Squadron. We have you covered. Make it quick," Vader cut in.

There was a moment of silence as everyone searched for his fighter. No one could find in those couple seconds, but Luke could sense him and his squad behind and beside them. The man was sitting in the only blind spot his sensors contained.

"Understood," he answered before addressing his squad, "Rogue squadron form up. Watch your spacing and keep it fast."

One by one, the other pilots gave affirmative responses as they fell in. Luke watched on his sensor screen as Vader and his squad took up a screen formation around the X-Wings. Again, the lasers came streaking by. However, now they had more targets to focus on. The fighters ducked and weaved their way through the mess as their targets drew closer and closer. Using the oncoming fire as a beacon, Luke opened throttle all the way. Kilometers passed in seconds as his ship constantly shuttered from the abuse.

"Pick targets and switch over to torpedos," Luke ordered as he thumbed the weapon selector.

His targeting screen changed in time with the weapon of choice. As his squadron zeroed in on their targets, Vader's squadron kept the intercepting TIEs busy. One by one, the attackers were picked off or driven away by laser fire. What Luke didn't realize was that another squadron of allied fighters had joined the fray. A circling flight of TIEs running escort had joined the mess as they waited the clear to start the trench run. To add to the chaos, Admiral Piett's flagship was injecting its own heavy lasers. Their trajectory took them right through the middle of the dogfights as they raced for the generator. More than once, a ship simply ceased to exist as it was broadsided by one of the lasers.

The last few seconds were agonizing for Rogue Squadron as they forced their way to the AA towers. Suddenly, targeting systems gave off a series of rapid, shrill beeps. Within seconds of each other, the X-Wings fired off their pink orbs of death. Luke felt dozens of lives wink out as explosions ripped through both the shields and the outer hull. The mess of turrets was soon replaced by fire and twisted metal as venting atmosphere sucked both the living and the dead into space. The Alliance fighters were still pulling out when the bombers streaked past with escorts in tow.

"Loop around, and let's follow," Luke ordered.

At the same time he was talking, he shoved the stick hard against the firewall. The X-Wing responded instantly with a nose dive. The rest of his squadron followed suit as they fell in behind the TIEs.

"Sierra one, this is Rogue one. We're on your tail moving in for a pass," Luke warned over the comm.

"Copy that. We see you. Watch your spacing and be careful. Things are going to get a bit dicey down here," the squadron leader acknowledged.

"Understood."

Luke gritted his teeth as the lasers streaked through his peripheral vision. Simple maneuvers and small touches of the control yoke were all that separated him from death.

"They've changed the battery configuration through here," Biggs noted as he ducked under a stream of lasers.

"So I've noticed," Luke bit out as he fought for control of his own craft.

Suddenly, without warning, a massive fireball consumed the trench ahead. Follow up explosions followed as four TIE fighters came streaking in with blazing cannons. Luke resisted the urge to squeeze his eyes shut as he tore through the ball of fire and twisted durasteel. As Luke's fighter burst out of the inferno, he watched a similar mass of explosions cascade down the trench in front of Sierra flight's bombers. Once the shock of the explosion exited his system, Luke noted that the trench had fallen silent, there was no operational turrets to be seen.

"Who was that?" Luke demanded in spite of himself.

"I told you that we'd provide cover," crackled his father's voice.

"A little warning would have been nice," Luke chastised.

"There was no time. The center turret was about to shred your cockpit," his father argued.

Luke didn't respond, but simply nodded as he focused on hitting his target. Like with the point defense guns, Rogue Squadron fired off their torpedos within seconds of each other. Before the smoke had cleared from the TIE bombers, more explosions were tearing apart the shield.

Above the Executor, on the Infinity, Admiral Hood watched as the lead Executor slowly succumbed to the abuse. The aging officer watched as her shields failed one by one. Soon failing shields gave way to a failing superstructure as the MAC rounds punched holes clear through the ship. The Admiral let his gaze drift across the viewport as he checked on their other target. As the MACs were tearing into the Capital ship, her missiles were cutting into one of the Imperial-Class warships escorting her. He noted things were going well. Fire was pouring out of several different hull breaches, and fighters had nearly taken down her shields.

However, as Admiral Hood listened to his fleet's radio chatter, he noted that it wasn't going well enough. The rest of the Imperial fleet was moving and causing notable damage. The Home One and her escorting frigates were taking a lot of fire. Their fighter screens were quickly being overrun. As a result, the ships were getting hammered by waves of bombers. The Redemption was holding by way of will power alone, and at least two of the Infinity's escorting frigates had taken severe damage, while a third one had finally been ripped apart by laser fire. The Executor had multiple hull breaches, and the Devastator was nearly stripped of her shields completely.

"Angle down twenty degrees, bring us level with the Executor," Admiral Hood ordered, "Adjust aim on the MACs. Target the warship at point five-two-two. Divert two wings to screen the Redemption."

There was a ripple of affirmative responses as the crew carried out his orders. These were followed by a sudden drop in the deck as the ship lurched downward. As it did so, Admiral Hood felt the ship shudder as a new wave of lasers crashed into the portside.

"Shield strength," he demanded.

"Ninety-seven percent and holding," reported one of the officers.

The Admiral nodded as he processed their situation.

"Thank God for better ships… even if they can't turn worth a damn," the Admiral muttered to himself.

Suddenly a new set of alarms started screaming.

"Sir, collision immanent," Roland explained urgently.

A brief look told Admiral Hood who they would collide with. He tightened his jaw as he sized up the battered Executor.

"Divert shields to full front and increase speed one hundred percent," he ordered.

"Sir?"

"You heard me," the Admiral confirmed, "If she can break a battlecruiser, she can break that son of a bitch."

"Aye sir," Roland acknowledged before disappearing.

There was a sudden change in engine pitch as the reactor kicked into overdrive.

"Shields are diverted to full front," reported one of the crewmen.

"Sir, the rest of the fleet just appeared," cut in another crewman, "We have battle groups flanking the Imperials on both sides."

The Admiral didn't respond as he watched the Executor flood his viewport. Admiral Hood barely registered the collision alarms as he watched his target. Her captain must have realized the danger, because she suddenly dipped down and attempted to turn hard to the starboard. Had there been a couple more kilometers of separation, it might have worked. All the captain had to do is shut down his already crippled stabilizer and fire the thrusters hard to that side. However, in this case it was too little too late. Admiral Hood was thrown across the holotable as the Infinity's bow smashed into the Super Star Destroyer's topside. Fire washed over her MAC guns as alarms echoed from at least seven different stations.

From the bridge of the Executor, Admiral Piett watched the collision with shock and horror. From his view, the front bow of the Infinity was covered in fire and twisted metal as she bore through the ship's topside. As the ship smashed through, follow up explosions raced across the Imperial ship as the entire bow broke and twisted apart. Admiral Piett expected the worst as he looked up at the Infinity's thrusters. Much to his surprise, the thrusters appeared to be firing at full power.

"Get me a status on the Infinity," he demanded.

There was a second of stunned silence as the crew gaped at the scene of destruction.

"Hey!" he shouted, "Damn it. Someone get me a status on the Infinity."

Snapped out of their shock and awe, the crewmen in question immediately went to work getting the information.

"Shields are holding strong," reported an officer.

"From what I can tell she's fine structurally," added another.

Admiral Piett nodded as he marched over to the comm station.

"Get me Admiral Hood," he demanded.

"Yes sir, but if their comms are damaged-"

"We'll deal with that when we get there. Now try reaching someone," Piett interrupted.

"Yes sir," the man answered crisply.

As Admiral Piett worked to find out how the Infinity was doing, Admiral Thrawn watched the chaos from his own ship. He let out a sigh, as he watched the collision. The ship would be fine. He knew that much. Her commanding officers were risk takers, but they weren't suicidal. Knowing this, he sized up the battle as a whole. It appeared that they had taken the bait- hook, line, and sinker. The fleet was closing in tight around Piett's battlegroup. The fact that they were alive gave testament to the skill of the three Admirals in charge. Now it was Thrawn and the Arbiter's turn. They had jumped in as close as they could to the fleet. It was large, but without the ability to maneuver, it would be hard to field all of their guns. Armed with this knowledge, Thrawn began issuing orders to men, while coordinating with the Arbiter's forces. There were some tricks he had that would even things out.

"Arm the lower cannon and target the nearest star destroyer," Thrawn ordered, "Issue the same order to the rest of the seventh fleet. Tell the black fleet battle groups to give us cover."

There was a series of affirmative responses and sudden shift in the deck as both the ship and the crew reacted to his orders. Then, without warning, a series of blue lights marked the condemned. Seconds later, thousands of Imperials were sent to hell in fiery blasts that ripped apart their ships. All at once, over two dozen ships were ripped apart by the massive laser cannons. Ship parts went spinning in different directions as reactors overloaded and armories detonated. Fires and explosions in the fuel storages and ammunitions caches finished the job for most ships. The only exceptions were the Executor-Class ships. However, those weren't Thrawn's targets. He would leave those to the Arbiter and his ships.

"Sir, all targets have been crippled. Batteries are recharging across the fleet," the Captain reported.

"Very good," Thrawn acknowledged as he studied the tactical board, "Drop us in closer to the Imperial fleet. Prioritize targets and open fire."

"Yes sir."

With that, he took off to carry out Thrawn's orders.

Across the battlefield, Admiral Hood had just picked himself up off of the floor in time to watch Thrawn's own destructive entry. Immediately after this, Admiral Hood looked through his victim's debris field and saw the last thing he ever thought he would see in a space battle. All of the Arbiter's battlecruisers broke formation and dove into the mess. Each one leveled off over an Imperial warship. For a lot of them, it was an Executor-Class warship or cluster of smaller warships. The rest braved the onslaught of lasers to level out over the orbital platforms.

"Sir, we have radiation spikes coming from the Covenant battlecruisers," Roland announced.

Admiral Hood's jaw dropped as he realized what was happening.

"The crafty son of a…"

The Admiral trailed off as he watched the lightshow. All at once, the glassing lasers on each ship fired. Ships that were once fully shielded, suddenly ceased to exist. Entire warships were reduced to ash and molten durasteel. In some cases, the laser cut clear through one or two ships and crippled another. For many of the platforms and warships that weren't atomized or slagged beyond recognition, the resulting EMP scrambled their systems and in some cases completely shut down their ships. Shields failed, guns fell silent, fighters were left dead in space, and reactors came to a sudden stop as the field washed over them.

In the span of a few minutes, the Imperial Fleet that had originally outgunned them nearly two to one was now brought down to their size. However, they were also in disarray. It didn't take a mind reader to know that. Countless fights with the Covenant allowed Admiral Hood to imagine the Imperial radio chatter with great detail. The first reaction would be horror. The next would be shock and confusion. The next would be hyperfocus as they tried to regroup and assess. After that, the real fight would begin… That is, assuming they lived that long.

Admiral Hood knew the opening was limited but it was there. If they pushed hard, and they pushed now, this had the potential to be a very short battle.

"This is Admiral Hood to 2nd Echelon. Form up and push forward. Prioritize targets and give them hell," he ordered over the ship-to-ship comm.

The response was quick as the fleet jumped into action.

 **(Byss: Imperial Citadel)**

Emperor Palpatine instantly recoiled from his battle meditation. The magnitude of death threatened to take his breath away. Hundreds of thousands of people disappeared from the force in an instant. Not since Alderaan had he felt such death in the force. Searching through the force, he could not find those lives again.

"That's impossible," the Emperor muttered, "They lack such firepower."

However, it was true. They were dead. Entire ships were gone. Those that weren't dead were violently ripped from his battle meditation. The force flooded with chaos and confusion. The fear was as nauseating as the thought of the Rebel fleet holding that kind of destructive fire power. For a brief second, Sidious felt fear for his own life. If they had that kind of power, then surely they…

"No," he corrected himself out loud as he leaned back in his throne room.

This was personal to Vader. He wouldn't let things end with an orbital strike. He would try to make his former master pay. He would make the Emperor watch as his empire burned down around him. The apprentice would exact his vengeance personally. A wicked grin worked it's way onto his face as he thought the matter over. Vader would come to him personally. He would come to kill him. Then, and only then, Sidious would show him just how much he had left to learn. Then he would remind that machine who the real master is.


	24. Chapter 24

**Hey everyone! Well, here it is... part two of the battle for Byss. Now, I'm not going to lie. This chapter has me even more nervous than usual (which is saying something because posting any chapter worries me). People are going to love it or hate it (especially the Halo fan boys convinced that the UNSC can do no wrong and that the star wars universe is totally inferior in every way). That said, I really hope that you all like it, and regardless of your opinion, I would love to know what you think. I do read your reviews and listen to what is said.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you Chapter 24...**

* * *

 **(UNSC Infinity: Central Vehicle Bay)**

Once could cut the tension in the room with a knife when General Graven and General Harris walked in. Assembled in front of them was a group of over a thousand geared up Marines, ODSTs, and Alliance infantrymen- each one physically and mentally prepared for the fight of their lives.

Looking out, General Graven felt an air of pride wash over him, even as the knot in his gut intensified. His men weren't the most professional, most disciplined, and they sure as hell weren't the best supplied soldiers. However, they were some of the most spirited. There was fire in their veins. There were collective reasons why his men chose to fight- Jeda, Hoth, Yavin IV, Lothal... the list went on forever. Yet there was also personal reasons. Most were former Imperials with demons to lay to rest, while rest had grievances they needed to avenge. Every man and women of his was not here under orders. They were here by choice. They were here because they believed in something bigger than themselves. They saw it and they were willing to fight and die for it.

"Ladies and gentlemen," General Harris called out.

The response was instant as everyone fell silent. Within seconds, most of them had put their side conversations aside. The few (mostly Alliance troops) that missed the hint, were quickly shut up by the people next to them.

Satisfied, General Harris continued, "For the UNSC and women who don't know him, I'd like to introduce General Graven. I've talked to him personally, and seen his files- both the Alliance one and the Imperial one. He's well respected in both circles, and quite accomplished. The read was quite entertaining to say the least. That said, I expect him listened too and his orders obeyed to the letter. Treat him as you would any other officer. Am I understood?"

"Sir, yes, sir," the UNSC troops sounded off in unison.

The General gave a satisfied nod before motioning Graven forward. The Alliance General didn't hesitate as took a ready step forward. He stared once at the datapad in his hand before looking back at the holoprojector behind him.

"Roland, can we have that tactical map?" he requested.

"Certainly," the A.I. answered.

The next second, a map, at least twice General Graven's size, of the Imperial Zone appeared. Both Generals stepped to the side. This gave the gathered soldiers an unobstructed view of the hornets nest waiting for them planet side. As if to highlight the gravity of the situation, the deck shook. If Graven had to guess, it was from the Infinity taking another salvo of lasers to her portside. He shook it off as he stared at the uneasy faces in the crowd.

"Well... this is it," he began slowly before picking up speed, "We've done it. After years and months of fighting we've come to the end. I'm not going to lie, this planet is ugly. Many of you know the horror stories from Scarriff and other heavily guarded installations. Some of you are even survivors of those same stories. Well, I'll be honest and tell you now This is at least ten times worse than any of them-" he paused as hushed murmurs rippled through the crowd.

"For the ODSTs and Marines in this group, Byss is their answer to Earth and pre-glassing Reach," General Harris added.

"But the target is worth the price," General Graven picked back up as he tried to fight the instant moral drop, "The Emperor, his command staff, and every piece of Intelligence we could ever need is in one place. This is home. This is not only our do or die moment, but theirs as well. He ruled his Empire with fire and death, and that his how he will fall... With that said, let us begin…"

For the next several minutes, General Graven outlined the same plan currently being explained to the Spartans, the Covenant soldiers, and the former Imperial ground forces by other officers. It was a deceptively simple plan. However, it was risky plan. Byss was a place designed to hide its forces in plain sight. Garrisons and fixed batteries were hidden by high rise civilian buildings and underneath ornate streets crowded with civilians. The odds of enemy AT ATs and TIEs appearing out of nowhere was stupidly high. The risk of being surrounded was higher then ever. One could walk right past the entry to a garrison or deployment tunnel and not know it. Byss's deceptive nature coupled with the hundreds of thousands of Imperial troops stationed there guaranteed that this would be an uphill battle.

As the General spoke the crowd of soldiers seemed to evenly split between those who took Byss's defenses as a personal challenge and those who thought this whole thing was a suicide mission that shouldn't be attempted. However, the apprehension refused to come out as various questions were asked.

"Civilians are a non-factor. We don't attack them, but we don't go out of our way to save them either. In the end, this whole thing will probably be a sheet of glass anyways," General Graven explained to a Marine Captain.

General Graven noted several more uncomfortable glances from the Marines as ODSTs as he looked for another hand.

"Is there any other questions?" he pressed.

All he got was silence and heads shaking "no". At that moment, Roland's figure replaced the map.

"Gentlemen, Admiral Hood wanted me to give you the twenty minute warning," he stated.

"Understood," Graven responded before turning to the assembly and barking, "Time's up, and you know the plan. Grab your gear and get to your stations. ODSTs drop in twenty. Everyone else drops in forty. Dismissed."

Taking their cue, everyone grabbed their stuff and began dispersing. Inside this crowd was Ahsoka and Rex. Both had different but overlapping feelings.

"It's been awhile since I last had a briefing that depressing," Rex commented as he slipped on his helmet.

"Not long enough for me," Ahsoka noted solemnly, "This is going to be Geonosis all over again."

Rex scoffed as he mentally called up the map he had seen.

"Forget Geonosis. This will be another Mygeeto, just with better aesthetics," the Captain argued.

"I didn't know you were ever there," Ahsoka observed with a curious smile, and partially widened eyes.

For the first time in years, Rex heard the child like curiosity that had stuck with the former Commander clear through the war. He allowed a thin smile. as he pushed the memories out of his mind. He needed to focus. Nostalgia could come later once things were finished.

"It was a few months after you left. We ended up doing an abbreviated tour in that mess," Rex explained.

"I see. Well, hopefully this will be quicker," she concluded as they approached their unit.

"One can only hope." Rex agreed.

At the same time everyone was finishing preparations in the vehicle bays, the ODST drop bays were flooding with people. Every shock trooper on the the Infinity was stowing away their gear for the drop.

"Hey, Captain. Why aren't those Spartans flying with us? At least the second gen. has drop training," quizzed one trooper.

"Ya, and I know that several of the fours are former ODSTs," added the Sergeant next to him.

Captain Lewis let out an annoyed sound as he clamped his rifle into place. Neither person could decide if it was trying to be a sigh or growl.

"Because, we need the numbers," He grumbled before bitterly quipping, "Besides, they wouldn't fit in the pods."

All three of them knew that last part wasn't true. However, the point was made. The rest of the time was spent in relative silence as they finished gearing up.

"Ninety seconds to drop… I repeat: Ninety seconds to drop," Roland announced over the intercom.

The bay fell silent and the air turned electric as everyone settled into their pods. There was little comfort found as the ship quit its periodic vibrating. No one said anything, but they all knew that the ship was removing itself from the battle.

"Thirty seconds," Roland counted down.

The chatter amongst the ODSTs picked up again as they began powering up their systems and doing last minute checks and strapping in.

"Ten seconds," Roland warned.

"Yo, Thomas! I've got five that says we land on one of those pretty little guns of theirs," bet one of the privates.

"Make it ten and you have a deal," Sergeant Vladmir added in.

"Five… Four…" Roland's voice interjected.

"Ten?" Thomas clarified skeptically.

"Three… Two…"

"Ten."

"One… Drop!" Roland called out.

Vladmir's stomach shot up into his chest as his pod shot into atmosphere

"Deal… Jimmy?" Thomas agreed as he started making adjustments to his pod.

There wasn't an immediate response as Jimmy tried to find his voice again.

"I'm in," he finally croaked.

"I think the rookie's wishing he found a different branch," Thomas quipped.

No one responded as the Colonel began issuing orders. The man's gravelly voice was nearly drowned out as they fell into a wall of lasers. Streaks of green filled Sergeant Vladimir's view. It was a constant fight to stay on target as he was peppered with near misses. He was violently thrown against his harness as the pod next to him exploded. Two lasers up through the bottom had sent pieces of the man's pod in every direction.

"All teams, form up and adjust trajectories on my mark," the Captain ordered.

This was the dicey part. One miss timed maneuver or sudden freeze up could spell the end for multiple pods.

"Team one, mark my position and stand by," the Sergeant bit out as lasers tossed him against every side of his harness.

With his altimeter dropping by the thousands, it took every ounce of discipline he had not to move early. The man looked up and saw the bottom of another pod. If he moved now, they would both crash midair. The impact would kill both of them before either one knew what had happened. As it was, the decent was deadly enough. An exploding pod threw him into one side of his straps before another threw him to the other side- each one threatening to send his pod spiraling off to who knows where. The comms instantly came alive with overlapping voices as they called out the demised and soon to be MIA.

"Stand by… and mark! All units split and good luck. See you on the floor," the Colonel barked.

The radios instantly changed topic as people coordinated their moves. One by one the pods drifted in different directions. More than once, Vladimir caught his breath as a pod, often pushed by ground fire, streaked by within inches of him. Off to his left and below, two others didn't get things right. The pods slammed into each other in a fiery display of death and destruction. The debris field crashed the pod below and sent it spinning off in a totally different direction.

He had just opened his helmet comm when someone else called out, "We lost Smith and we lost Perez. Schmitty spun off."

"Noted. I saw it. Well pick up the pieces when we land," the squad leader acknowledged.

The rest of the drop was equally harrowing and even more lethal, as the pods split into distinctive groups. Each one was forced to thread their way through the mess of lasers as they closed on their targets, or at least the ground as close as they could get.

Vladmir's body tensed as the duracrete building roof flooded his vision. The initial impact threatened to snap both of his legs. He let out a pained yell as he hit. The deafening impact buried his pod in the roof. However, it was soon forgotten as the structure gave way. The splintering glass and clouds of dust and stone blinded him as his stomach dropped. Suddenly a steel rail cut through his peripheral vision. The pod suddenly stopped. The wide eyed Sergeant immediately turned to his right. Stabbed into the back wall, two inches above his shoulder, was the jagged end of a cannon barrel. He quickly looked out and saw the twisted and smashed remains of the weapon and crew scattered across the level.

"Someone's going to owe money," he mumbled as he stared out.

The sound of muffled voices immediately refocused him. Throwing off the straps was easy, but getting the door open was another story. A piece of duracrete as big as him was wedged against his door. He stiffened out of reflex as the edge of a white helmet poked up from a piece of the ceiling. He couldn't hear the words, but it was clear that more than one person was talking. A sudden crash tore his focus from the approaching squad. Before, he knew what had happened, there were two more explosions, and muffled screams as the approaching troopers disappeared into the floor. Two seconds later, the reports of a magnum capped off the cacophony.

Working fast, Sergeant Vladimir detonated the hinges. The door twisted itself outward with the bottom wrapped around the duracrete slab. It was hard going, but the ODST finally managed to worm his way out and retrieve his rifle. The second he leveled his rifle, a wave of lasers streaked through his peripheral vision. He spun around in time to spot the offending trooper- blood gushing from a shrapnel wound in his side. The man instantly crumpled to the ground as a three round burst tore through his chest plate. As the Sergeant picked through the duracrete and bodies, he watched his heads up display for signs of the other ODSTs in his unit.

"Squad one report," he ordered through his helmet com.

"This is Hernandez. Thomas, O'Connor, and Davis are both with me. Jimmy and Wilks are down," responded a voice.

"Where are you?" he questioned as he his eyes surveyed the floor below.

No one responded as Vladimir dropped through to the floor below. Staring at him was a yawning hole ringed on three sides by twisted metal and broken duracrete. Up against a center post were twisted remains of a pod. That pod had smashed against a hidden support beam. A glance inside revealed what was left of Wilk's body. Suddenly the muffle sound of small arms fire broke any concentration he had.

"Hernandez? Where are you?" he demanded again.

Again, no one responded as Vladimir hunted for a way down. The second pod had wiped out three floors and left a hole way too big for him to jump down. This meant that he had to find a stair well. He refused to use the civilian lift. If the doors opened in front of a group of Imperials, he would have no chance of surviving.

"I'm here… It seems the Imperials noticed our landing. I've got waves of hostiles pouring in on level-" there was a pause as he conversed with someone off channel, "-level 96."

"Understood. I'm three floor up and on my way," he acknowledged.

 _Crash!_

Sergeant Vladimir nearly jumped out of his skin as the vase off to his side exploded. As he ducked below the bar counter, another laser slammed into the wall where his head had been. Bolts of energy chased the trooper as he ducked into a maintenance hallway.

"Watch for sniper fire. They've got 99 painted," he called as he risked a glance back around the corner.

Instantly, a laser chared the right side of his helmet.

"We've noticed," bit out O'Connor- his Irish accent clearly audible, "luckily there's no good angle in here."

"There is on mine," Vladimir bit out as he thumbed the activation pad for a stairwell door.

Before the door was open, he squeezed through and began descending the steps two at a time. As he raced down the steps, Vladimir could hear the small arms fire growing both in volume and in intensity.

"Friendly entering the combat zone," he announced as he rounded the next turn in the steps.

As he did so, he could see a group of stormtroopers racing through the doorway in question. Without much of a thought, Sergeant Vladimir unclipped a frag grenade from his belt, pulled the pin, counted to three and then pitched it down and across the stair well. One of the troopers must have caught the movement out of his peripheral vision, as he spun around just in time to get smacked in the head with the grenade. The trooper yelled out in surprise as he swatted the object back over the railing. However, it was too late. At knee height, the grenade exploded.

 _BANG!_

The deafening explosion tore apart the one trooper and the man in front of him, sent three others tumbling back down the steps, and peppered every person in the squad with shrapnel. Within seconds, another head cautiously poked out through the doorway. Vladimir was waiting and put him down with a three round burst. Upon arriving at the doorway, the Sergeant stepped over the bodies and put his back to the against the wall before producing a flash grenade from his belt. This was either going to work, or he would be dead. Regardless, he decided that it was the safest option. Following the same series of steps that he did for the other grenade, he pitched it through the doorway.

There was a series of concussive blasts followed by a cloud of smoke. He spun through the doorway with a raised rifle. His rifle bucked in three round bursts as he caught the first trooper in the left side of the head. Vladimir, hit the next in the forehead, and punctured the chest plate on the third one before any of them could line up a shot through the smoke. The ODST pressed his surprise advantage as he worked toward the lounge area that his subordinates were pinned down in. Soon his own rifle was adding to the hailstorm of energy and superheated lead.

Within minutes the two sides managed to finish completely gutting what was once a pleasant civilian living area. Lasers branded the earth toned walls and burned furniture while grenades and hand-to-hand fightings shattered pictures and smashed shelves while ripping apart tables and counters alike. Things like kitchen appliances and lamps were turned into melee weapons as both sides fought for every inch of ground. In the same chaos, rugs and blankets were used in crude attempts to disorientate enemies.

Inside the Kitchen, Sergeant Vladimir had found a nice position behind a counter to shoot from. However, as he went to change magazines in his rifle, a flash of white to his left caught the man's attention. His head snapped around in time to see a stormtrooper in white and red armor vault the five foot bar counter. Vladimir immediately spotted the vibroblade in his right hand. As the trooper came crashing down, the Sergeant managed to twist to the side and catch the blade a few inches from his throat. However, despite his efforts to stay up, Newton was not to be denied and both soldiers crashed into tile floor. He closed a hand of iron around the knife wielding arm and leveraged it to slam the trooper into the cupboards. Wood splintered and the two fell against the durasteel back. In amongst the food and kitchen utensils the two struggled for control of the blade as a war raged around them. The seconds dragged into eternity as both humans fought by feel alone. Finally, Vladimir managed to snake his hand around to his own combat knife. Then in one swift strike, he slammed the trooper's hand against the metal wall and used the opening to plunge his own blade into the man's neck. The man let out a muted yell as Vladimir twisted up with the blade. Upon removing the blade, he untangled himself from the dead soldier, wiped the worst of the blood off of his hands, and finished reloading his rifle. With that complete, he chambered the first round and rejoined the firefight.

Working with the narrow layout of the floor, the four shock troopers were able to corner the squadron in an area with little cover. After what felt like ever, they were able to finish off the stormtroopers. As the last Imperial trooper collapsed against the wall, a voice crackled through Vladimir's helmet com.

"This is Captain Lewis. All squads report," the man ordered.

In the background, Sergeant Vladimir could hear the muffled sound of gunfire and explosions.

"This is Squad 1, We've lost one but the first target is destroyed," Vladimir reported.

"I saw that. It seems you crashed right into it," Lewis observed.

"It seems so," he confirmed as he motioned for the squad to move out.

There was another moment of silence punctuated by muffled small arms fire as the Vladimir and his men began their run down the steps.

"I'm staring at the north entrance of that tower. Get out now. Two armored columns just met at the bottom level. They're throwing up a tight perimeter," the Captain urgently reported.

The Sergeant briefly did the math in his head as he spun the corner and continued down. They had at least two companies touching down on the pad plus another division down below- plus or minus a company.

Vladimir silently cursed in Russian before acknowledging, "Understood. We're headed for the bridge on level-"

He was cut off as a series of explosions rocked the building. After the initial salvo of seven or eight. The explosions began happening at intervals of one or two every ten seconds.

"What the hell are they shooting?" O'Connor demanded over the comm.

"Heavy lasers. They have mobile batteries that are opening up on the building," The Captain answered, "We're knee deep in our own firefight. As soon as we can, we'll break off and dig you out. In the meantime, get out."

The Sergeant silently swore to himself as he ripped open the keypad to the door he needed. The Russian's fingers darted around in precise movements as he worked to hotwire the door. The constant shaking did him few favors as he tried to work with the foreign system.

"Damn it!" he swore after the third failed attempt, "This is a door to a lobby, not Sword Base."

Then, as though his words had broken the door's resolve, the correct wires touched together and the door hissed open. The door wasn't even clear open before they sprinted through. With the lights cut, Vladimir found himself in a room of long shadows and black hole corners.

As they made their way through the lounge and past the bar that every level seemed to contain, the building gave one last violent shudder and the floor suddenly dropped out from under Vladimir's feet. All five of them went sliding as the windows slowly replaced a view of the skyline with a view of the ground several hundred feet below them. As his feet landed on the mantle of a fire pit, an ear-piercing screech caught the Sergeant's attention. Yet all he could do is watch as their bridge to safety buckled and broke apart under the sudden, odd angled stress.

Behind him, there was a yell as Davis crashed into a bolted down table. The legs instantly snapped and the ODST found himself in an uncontrolled fall toward the glassed portal to oblivion. For the remaining three it was like watching a train wreck in slow motion. They knew what was happening and the end result, but could do nothing about it. One foot hit the durasteel frame while the other instantly punched through the glass window pane. Gravity didn't hesitate as it pulled Davis to his death while the rest of the building continued its slow motion fall.

From his position a mile and a half away, Captain Lewis could only watch in horror as the building finally began to fold from the constant beating. In all of his life and all of his jumps- from Jericho to Earth- he had never felt so helpless. He was so close but so far. They lacked both the numbers and weapons needed to break through to the guns destroying the building. This feeling only intensified as other Squadron and Platoon leaders reported their own hellish situations.

Even as the tower began its dust and debris shrouded collapse, the Imperials continued to drill into it with volley after volley of lasers. With two squads pinned down in the plaza by double the firepower, and at least three squads scattered elsewhere in the surrounding hundred square kilometers, there was nothing he could do but watch and shoot. He was refocused on their own fight as a man shouted in his ear. Turning to the Lieutenant he emphatically pointed to his ear.

"We can't stay here. We're getting chewed to pieces," the man yelled louder.

Lewis's eyes darted around the battlefield as he looked for a solution. The man was right. There was no way they could stay. With the exception of waist high duracrete barriers, and scattered plant boxes of the same material, there was no cover. Within a few seconds, he had his answer.

"See that building?" he yelled as he gestured to a building across and slightly in front of them.

The Lieutenant looked before emphatically nodding.

"Put the men together. We're going to rush it. We'll find cover there," he ordered.

The man hesitated for a brief second before ducking away to get the troops together. Lewis was not a religious man. He never had been and thirty years of war with the Covenant had purged him of any belief in a higher power… at least any benevolent higher power. However, as the men gathered, he found himself silently praying. It wasn't an eloquent prayer or a prayer to any specific god. It was simply for whomever could keep them alive through this mess.

"We're ready and standing by," the man suddenly reported.

The Lieutenant jumped out of his skin as he was ripped from his thoughts. Looking back he spotted a young private with a rocket launcher slung over his back.

"You, give that here," he ordered as a light bulb clicked on in his head.

The man nodded and passed over the massive weapon. With all of the expertise that came with rank and age, Captain Lewis shouldered the weapon and pointed it at the storefront in question.

"This is how we play," he bitterly mumbled as he fired off the first shot.

As the rocket left the barrel, his adjusted his aim slightly, waited for the barrels to rotate, and fired off the second rocket in the ordinance pack. The front of the building was instantly engulfed in orange and red fire as glass, metal shrapnel, and the occasional Imperial soldier shot out in every direction. The Captain ordered everyone forward as he slung the empty weapon over his shoulder. As a result, he fell into the middle of the pack as they sprinted to the building. The storm of lasers followed them as they darted through the open. The man beside him dropped to the ground as two lasers cut through the ribs and one drilled into his head. The Captain nearly went tumbling as the man in front of him stumbled and nearly fell. Seeing that he was still alive, the Captain grabbed him by the collar and practically dragged the injured Corporal through what was once the front door of the building.

As they entered the battle scarred building, the two squads found a new fight waiting for them. The surviving stormtroopers had just regained their wits from the explosion. As the ODSTs quickly found what they thought was concealment in the wrecked groceries. They were proven wrong when three ODSTs instantly went down. four or five Imperial Stormtroopers written off as dead poured lasers into their backs. The Stormtroopers- some of whom were legitimately injured critically- quickly dragged themselves behind cover as they finished collecting themselves.

Captain Lewis let out a string of curses that would have made as Drill Sergeant blush as he threw himself down behind a seven foot wall of groceries. This string of curses was only added to as his sense of relative safety came crashing down. The wall to his side gave a loud hiss as a ten foot by seven foot section gave way and spun to the side. Instantly more Stormtroopers came pouring out. Within seconds, Lewis had unloaded both his assault rifle and magnum into the lead troopers. Each one hit its mark and the troopers staggered and dropped where they were. However, more took their place and he was hastily forced from his cover as the man next to him was cut down. The last thing he felt as he rounded the corner were several sharp burning sensations- the first lasers cut through the side of his chest plate. Lewis staggered to the side as fought to keep his feet under him. The Captain heard the muffled sound of his Magnum hitting the ground as a final one to the chest turned his world black.

 **(UNSC Infinity: High Orbit)**

Admiral Hood listened with a Poker face as the ODST Colonel spelled out their situation between gunshots.

"It's not good sir. They were waiting for us. From what I could tell, every pod had someone waiting. We got chewed up with the flak and the survivors touched down in front of proverbial firing squads," the man explained as an explosion shook his holographic figure.

"There's always someone waiting," the Admiral grumbled.

"No sir… not like this. No one has defenses this in sync," the Colonel urgently countered.

The Admiral shook his head as he watched the Colonel trade fire with an Imperial off screen. The man was right. He had Roland watching the Imperial comm channels and it wasn't pretty. They had managed to keep ground communications off the known bands until it was too late- about five minutes ago. Now Admiral Hood got to listen as entire divisions surrounded and picked off the isolated special ops teams.

"Arrogant bastard," he cursed as he stared at an image of the Imperial Citadel.

However, truth be told, he wasn't sure who exactly he was cursing. The Imperials had pulled a fast one with their comms, but he had rejected the idea of sending down Spartans. He had concluded that the ODSTs could both take out the necessary guns and secure a landing sight. After all, the Spartans would be needed elsewhere like in securing the Citadel command center and supporting the under equipped Alliance troops. Clearly his judgement was wrong. Yet, if he really wanted to play the blame game, he could blame Vader for wanting to take on the Emperor face-to-face, or he blame Thrawn for painting the entire city as an intelligence gold mine instead of just giving the location of key buildings and letting them raise the rest from orbit.

Admiral Hood was pulled from his bitter thoughts as the Colonel turned back and advised, "Sir, your best bet is to just raise this entire continent. They're literally coming out of every hole and passage, and the skies still most assuredly belong to the TIEs."

"No," the Admiral instantly replied. He had already thought that matter over and written it off, "We have an objective and we're going to complete it. We need their intel. Tell the survivors to hole up and watch their heads. We'll come to you, and we'll finish this. Once you're done, mark those towers. The Chimera's going to give them a special gift."

"Yes sir," the man hesitantly acknowledged before cutting the transmission.

As soon as he disappeared, Hood turned to Captain Lasky.

"Inform Vader and Luke that the two Spartan teams aren't going to the Citadel. This task is now theirs alone," he ordered.

"Yes sir," the Captain acknowledged before asking, "What are the Spartans doing then?"

"Commander Palmer and her Spartans are playing 'Marine' for a day."


	25. Chapter 25

**Hello, everyone! It's been a while. I am sorry for the long gap between chapters. My last three months have been a non-stop series of train wrecks. However, now I am back and with a new chapter. There isn't too much to say, just that I hope you enjoy it and would love to know what people think. Even if I don't respond all the time, I do read the reviews and try to apply what is suggested... and ya... that's it. We're getting closer to the end.**

 **So, without further ado, I give you chapter 25...**

* * *

 **(Byss: Imperial Sector)**

Colonel Li threw himself against the wall as he shouted into his helmet comm. To his right, a squad of ODSTs -at least what was left of a squad- burst through the door next to him. The leaders quickly scanned the room as the next two ushered in their injured squad mates.

"How many?" he demanded over the deafening small arms fire.

"Seven of us," the leading Corporal shouted, "We have two down including the Sergeant."

"And the Lieutenant?"

There was no immediate response as an explosion sent both ODSTs stumbling.

"Dead, along with Captain Lewis and the rest of the Company. We were the only ones to make it out," the man answered as he braced himself against a wall.

The Colonel cursed to himself before conversing with someone in his helmet comm. After the brief exchange was over, he re-addressed the Corporal.

"Take them into the sublevel. There's two corpsmen waiting. Follow their directions double time. In exactly two minutes the whole world's going to come crashing down on these guys," he ordered.

The man tilted his head curiously, but took off nonetheless. Once he disappeared, the Colonel opened his helmet comm again.

"All teams pull back to the sublevel. I repeat: break off immediately and fall back to the sublevel," the Colonel ordered as he sprinted back through the maze of hallways.

It didn't take him long to find the door to the stairwell. Inside the duracrete tube, he could hear gunfire and muffled grenade explosions. His body tensed with every explosion as he worked to seal the level. As the door panel gave a satisfying chirp, the doors to the level above hissed open. Colonel Li pointed his rifle at the stairs out of reflex. His finger had just wrapped itself around the trigger when he stopped short. Instead of white armored Imperials, he was greeted with the site of exhausted and mostly injured ODSTs. Through chaos, he could hear someone counting them off one by one as they rushed through the door.

"Let's go!" Li shouted, "Double time it!"

The soldiers picked up their pace as they bounded, limped, and stumbled down the steps. Finally, the last few appeared with their backs turned and weapons blazing. The smell of burnt stone reached his nose as lasers burned into the duracrete wall. The colonel forced himself to ignore the shooting match as he did his own mental count of the ODSTs passing him by.

His focus was broken as one of the rear guard shock troopers let out a yell. The force of the twin laser hits sent him tumbling down the steps. Colonel Li's training kicked into overdrive as he leveled his assault rifle. The rifle nearly put his shoulder to sleep as he unloaded into the grated steps. Before the Imperial could react or finish his original target, hot lead shredded the thin metal steps. The remainder sliced through his feet and legs. As the Stormtrooper went crashing down, another ODST unloaded his Magnum into the second trooper while pulling his injured partner clear.

The firefight continued as the ODSTs hurried by. Colonel Li took his own position at the back as he filled the position originally held by the injured shock trooper. As the last two rushed by, he switched out magazines and slapped a wall mine onto the door. He chambered a new round before thumbing the activation switch. His armor and body both protested as lasers grazed his body and left his visor polarized to the point of being a hindrance. Breathing room was finally gained as the first trooper passed the level 1 door. The explosion instantly incinerated him while throwing chunks of flaming durasteel in every direction. Taking advantage of the confusion, the Colonel and his men disappeared into the sub level. Upon sealing the door, Li activated his helmet comm.

"This is Colonel Li to Chimerea, do you copy?" he started.

"This is Chimerea, we hear you- barely," Captain Pellaeon answered crisply.

"Understood. All units are clear…" the Colonel paused as he scanned the faces in the room, "Green light. Green light to engage ground targets."

There was a moment of static filled silence.

"This is Chimerea. Come again? We didn't copy," the Captain requested with obvious annoyance.

"I said, green light. I repeat: Green. Light… Cook 'em," the Colonel repeated.

"Green light understood. Hold tight, we're engaging," Pellaeon confirmed.

Li acknowledged before closing the channel and letting out an exasperated sigh.

"It's about damn time."

 **(ISD Chimerea: Low orbit)**

Captain Pellaeon felt his hands clench the mug of caf tighter as chatter picked up amongst the gunners. At the same time, he was forced to brace himself against a nearby bulkhead as the ship swung hard to the starboard side. Once ship groaned to a stop, Captain Pellaeon marched to the holotable. With the punching of a few keys, he pulled up a map of the target area.

"This is going to be tight," he mumbled.

"Sir, targets are in view," the Gunnery Officer reported.

"Prioritize targets and fire at will," he readily ordered.

"Yes sir," the man acknowledged before issuing orders to the men under his command.

Within seconds, the Captain could hear the muffled _thu-thump thu-thump_ of her broadsides firing in time. Years of command made it almost impossible not to imagine what was happening below. He knew what an orbital strike did, and it wasn't pretty. At this moment, the first lasers were hitting. Smaller buildings would be instantly vaporized in a blinding light, while bigger buildings almost instantly toppled from the explosions. In that densely packed of a space, buildings would fall like dominoes, while the durasteel beams melted into rivers of super heated liquid.

Anyone on the surface of the target zone would be dead within seconds or minutes as gas lines, armories, and other burning objects released a toxic cloud of lung crippling fumes. Those not crushed, atomized by giant lasers, or burned alive would get the joy of slowly suffocating as their entire world came crashing down. The long term effects would be hard to tell, as they would depend on Imperial intelligence. If they buried their ammunition deep, the fires would stay contained to the stricken area. However, if the fuel sources were within reach, his simple strike could burn down the entire continent with one all consuming fire storm. For the sake of the ODSTs trapped planetside, Pellaeon prayed that the first option was reality.

Even as her heavy lasers ripped up the ground below, the Chimerea shuttered under the repeated attacks by Imperial bombers. Occasionally there was a salvo tossed in from the surviving warships, but they were not his worry. A muffled explosion rocked the ship. Seconds later it was followed by a pained groan as several such bombers hit their mark.

The ship leaned hard to starboard and Pellaeon demanded, "Damage report."

"Shields holding at 75 percent. A portside explosion compromised the forward axillary stabilizer. We're transferring power to compensate, now," the Commander reported.

"Proceed," Captain Pellaeon acknowledged before shifting attention, "What the status on ground targets."

"Every target, except three northern bunker complexes, has fallen silent," the Gunnery Chief reported.

"Show me."

Pellaeon continued to bark orders as he marched to the holotable and waiting map. A quick look told him what he needed to know. The bunkers were too deep and too close to the ODST positions to be hit from orbit. His gunners were good, but they couldn't alter scientific law.

"Spellman, get me Thrawn," the Captain ordered.

"Yes sir."

 **(UNSC Infinity: forward hangar bay)**

"Alright, if they insist. The guns are self explanatory. If you can't figure them out by the time we're loaded, you'll be floating home," Han grumbled over the sound of roaring engines.

"Understood."

With that, the two UNSC crewmen disappeared inside the Millennium Falcon. As they bounded up the steps, Chewy turned to Han and let out a series of roars.

"Ya, you said it. This isn't brave. It's suicide," he agreed, "Head in and warm up the ship, I'll get our pact settled."

Chewy nodded, grumbled some more and disappeared inside as well. This left Han alone to hustle the complement of troops inside.

"Go in to the left and get situated, this is going to be a rough ride," he commanded as he made his way up the steps.

The leader nodded and yelled for his men to hurry up as he guided them inside. Han was forced to push back memories of his own Imperial days as he watched them run up the ramp. As soon as the last one darted in, Han punched the ramp control and sprinted to the bridge. The dull roar echoing through the freighter told him that recent repairs were holding. A brief glance over the controls as he sat told him that Chewy had already done his half of the preflight plus some of Han's.

"Ready?" he asked the Wookie.

Chewy gave a series of affirmative growls. However, they contained a mournful edge that Han hadn't heard before.

"Relax. Either way, this'll be one hell of a ride," he reassured his copilot.

Chewy grumbled a retort as Han gave the "all ready" to flight control.

Han ignored it as he answered the person, "Roger that. Falcon is history."

There was immediate regret for the choice of words as he guided his ship out of the hangar. However, neither person said anything. As soon as the Millennium Falcon cleared the atmospheric field, Han shoved the yoke forward and put full power into the thrusters. The ship lunged forward in a ninety degree nose dive for the surface.

"Hey, Dave and Sonya, are you guys floating home?" he asked over the intercom.

"Nope. We've got your six," Dave answered.

"Good, 'cause I'm bringing shields full front when we get in atmosphere," Han declared.

"I wouldn't," Sonya grunted, "TIEs are already having a-" she paused as an explosion rocked the ship, "Field day."

"Well, don't let them," Han barked before cutting the transmission.

Chewy let out a series of grunts as he pointed to the sensor

"Just get ready to rotate shields," Han shot back.

As Millennium Falcon weaved her way down, wave after wave of landing craft gave chase. Following right behind him was a pack of U-Wings and Clone War era tank lifters. Mixed in were the occasional Spartan filled Pelicans. Further out General Veers and Commander Appo began their journey alongside Covenant Phantoms and the bulk of the UNSC ground force.

For all the decent into smoke filled skies was harrowing. For most, the smoke billowing up from the slagged surface was both a blessing and curse. The same magnetically charged fog that concealed them also disrupted communications and caused sensors to glitch.

Right in the middle of the mess was Commander Appo. He listened intently to Infinity control as updates and orders were relayed. In that deployment bay of that assault shuttle, he found himself on Mygeeto all over again. As soon as things turned away from his area of concern, Appo turned to the rest of the men in the bay.

"This is it Gentlemen. Lord Vader's making entry into the Citadel," he declared.

The statement was met with controlled enthusiasm as muffled cheers echoed through the bay. Every trooper in the bay accepted the moral boost, but they were nobody's fool. Being in the Citadel was way different than killing the Emperor. That was still a ways away.

"Twenty seconds to drop," called the pilot over the intercom.

"Everyone up," Appo barked in reply.

The Stormtroopers all rose as the red light clicked on over head. The light turned yellow as muffled explosions echoed over quieting engines. Thick, black smoke flooded the deployment bay as Appo lead the charge outside. The chaos and explosions took on a muffled quality as his sound dampeners took instant effect. However, that was the least of his worries.

The Commander instantly began taking in the surrounding area as he sprinted for cover. It was a large courtyard with scarred and battered skyscrapers on three sides. In the middle was a grassy courtyard with a fountain in the middle and a street directly in front of him. Laser after laser streaked over head as he threw himself against the fountain. Through the smoke, he examined the building across the street. It was a wide building, but short by Byss standards. All in all, Appo was convinced that it was his building. Somewhere on the other side were fifteen ODSTs trying to stay alive.

His assessment of the situation was short but unpleasant. The level of fire coming down at them was high, but concentrated in only a few guns on the upper level. The Commander immediately picked his entry points and started barking orders.

The ground shook as multiple AT ATs lumbered into the middle of the plaza. Lasers glanced off their armor like nothing, while rockets failed to crack the armor just as well. The screeching of their twin lasers were drowned out by the overlapping explosions. Glass and twisted metal went spiraling out in a cascading line of fire.

"All teams push up," he ordered as he vaulted over the fountain, "Torrent Company stay on me. Rancor Company go right. Shadow Company, go left."

In all of his years with the 501st, Commander Appo had drilled discipline above all else. It was his belief that the most dangerous warriors in the galaxy were nothing if they lacked discipline.

It was in this moment that his command style payed off. Through the lasers and through the chaos, all three Companies divided without so much as skipping a beat. Twenty feet in front of Commander Appo, the main doors exploded inward from another laser blast off of a covering AT AT. Despite this, Appo's blaster continued to sound off as more troopers came pouring into the front room. Glass and body armor both crunched under his boots as Commander Appo sprinted to cover.

What happened next was as bloody as it was fast. Laser fire and thermal detonators turned the room white with orange and red streaks. Soldiers went down one right after another as Torrent Company bulldozed their way through the front reception area. With a wave of Appo's right hand, two platoons went to the upper levels while his lead platoon stormed the hallway. As the wide open area gave way to narrow hallways and small rooms, the close quarters combat became intense. What was initially a rapid assault bogged down into a pitched shooting match as black armored troopers began to fill the ranks of those that had fallen. The end result were short range fights that often lead to a defenders victory.

As Appo tossed himself against the wall right of a door, he motioned his squad to stack up. A half second later, he swung the corner. The first death trooper took four lasers to the face and neck area. His partner didn't simply wait for his number, but instead went diving for the relative cover of an overturned table. The stream of lasers followed him… That is until a previously unseen trooper broadsided Appo.

The death trooper's hit took him off the ground before violently slamming him back down on the same surface. Instantly, years of training took over as Appo deflected the first swing and went for his own open handed strike. He knew not to go for the helmet, but instead, the gap between the helmet and chest plate. Courtesy of the trooper's other arm, Appo's hit failed to land.

 _BOOM!_

Slabs of duracrete and metal rebar were sent skipping outward as the wall behind Appo was blasted open. The black armored man jerked his head up and ducked down while further pinning Appo to the floor, and reached for his vibroblade. The Commander was in the middle of wrenching himself when the man spasmed once… twice… and finally a third time. The cause was instantly revealed as three lasers to the head. As Appo pushed the body off of himself, a voice bellowed out through the chaos.

"On your feet, kid. This fight isn't over."

For the first time, since beginning the fight, Appo looked back. Standing over him was the only person to ever call him a kid and get away with it. He grinned in spite of himself as he snatched the E-11 Rex was holding out

"Damn right it isn't," Appo confirmed as ducked for cover.

Looking out, he saw what his men desperately needed: Shock, awe, and more numbers. At the head of the assault was his old commander, Ahsoka Tano leading the charge with another platoon's worth of rebel troops. Looking back through the one foot thick, duracrete hole, he watched as the purple legs of a Covenant Scarab lumbered on past it's target. As Appo continued to assess the situation, something clicked and he turned to his old teacher.

"Captain, it's your unit. What's the orders?" he asked crisply.

"It's not mine Commander," Rex argued as he put down two flanking Imperials, "So, what are the orders?"

Appo nodded and opened up the comm channel, and began barking orders.

"Tano, take your men and flank left. Raise as much hell as you possibly can while clearing those three rooms. First Platoon, regroup on me. We're pushing down the hall," he commanded.

Rex nodded his silent approval before darting off to catch up with Ahsoka. Up ahead, the former Jedi was already leading the charge. He twin blades were little more than blurs as she sent lasers streaking back at the Imperial defenders. She had heard Appo's orders loud and clear. If he wanted a mess, she would give him a mess. With the aid of a force enhanced sprint, she closed the distance between herself and the first squad of soldiers. One man went down by his own lasers, while the second and third ones were stabbed and decapitated respectively. As she ripped her blade from the second trooper, an invisible battering ram sent survivors smashing into the back wall. Blood trickling out from the cracks in their chest plates betrayed each man's fate. In that same instant, two death troopers sprinted through a side door. That was all the further they got. A wall of rebel fire cut them down mid stride.

"Rex, arm a couple," Ahsoka ordered as she approached the door opposite of where the troopers had come from.

Rex immediately understood the order and produced a couple thermal detonators. Ahsoka, gave a quick warning to Appo and nodded to Rex. The clone tossed them through the door. The Jedi took over and let the force guide her direction and timing. She let out a slow breath similar to that of a sniper preparing to pull the trigger. Half way through the breath, she clenched both fists. The concussive explosions were overlaid with screams of surprise, horror, and agony. The burned remains of one soldier tumbled through the door as the wall of fire receded. The loud explosions were replaced by the occasional screech as Appo's men finished off the few survivors.

"This finishes off the building. Once Lieutenant Whitefall get's here, We're moving on to our station and holding. Shadow company's being redirected to help General Veers. His men got chewed up pretty good in the landing," Appo declared.

"What about the ODST's? We still have to break them out," Ahsoka objected.

"Change of orders. UNSC has a Spartan team dropping in to escort them out. They'll rendezvous with General Gravin at the siege line," Appo hastily explained.

As if on cue, the sound of thumping boots spun Appo around. The wall of white was just in time.

"Lieutenant, get a head count and prepare to move. Orders have changed," the Commander ordered.

Whitefall nodded and immediately went to work. As he went to work, Appo got opened his helmet comm and began issuing orders to his own men. As he talked, the Commander watched the worry form under Rex's helmet as his head tilted slightly.

"Don't worry, the Arbiter's supplying all of the firepower we'll need," Appo reassured once the comm was closed.

"How much?" Rex pursued.

Appo grinned as he looked as his former CO.

"More than enough."

 **(SSD Conviction)**

Admiral Thrawn leaned back in his command chair as his eyes took in the surrounding battle. Streaks of light marked up the space between explosions. He mentally crossed off the last orbital platform as he continued to study the Imperial survivors. Outgunned and outnumbered, the Imperials were hastily racing for Byss's nearest moon. That is to say, most of them were. Thrawn would never know what prompted him to do so, but he decided to stand up and move toward the tactical board.

He was halfway there when a young Lieutenant called out, "Sir, multiple unidentified warships are entering the system."

"Imperial warships are already moving to intercept. At least one battle group has broken off," added in another officer.

"Put it up on tac," Thrawn barked.

Two seconds later, seven pulsing red dots were added off of the Conviction's starboard side. The numbers under each dot were replaced by numbers for an exit trajectory. If they were accurate, the ships were going to breakout right inside allied siege line. Instantly,Thrawn's brain kicked into overdrive. He had seen this kind of entry before, and only one race did it.

He spun around on one heel and moved for the center of the bridge. Along the way, he began issuing a rush of new orders.

"Contact the Infinity, Home One and Shadow of Intent. Tell each one that the Flood is here. Transmit flight trajectory and IFF information. Battle groups one and five are to form up on the Conviction- swing formation. The Imperial's are now Admiral Piett's problem. All other commands are to transfer control to Admiral Hood," Admiral Thrawn commanded.

The news and orders threw the bridge crew into a new flurry of activity. Senior officers began simultaneously trading information while issuing more specific orders to their subordinates. As the ship began banking around, information started to fill in the gaps left by the tactical board and other relevant instruments. As the ship came around, Thrawn watched as Piett's outer line of ships raced through his ion trail.

"Battle group one has acknowledged, and are falling in off the starboard," announced one officer.

"Battle group two has acknowledged and is falling in on the portside," added his partner.

"Infinity has responded and is coming around. Frigates are being redirected."

"Shadow of Intent is holding station. The rest of the fleet is redeploying… should be up on the board."

Admiral Thrawn listened intently as he hurried to the tactical board. He punched two keys, stepped over to the holotable, and pressed a few more keys. He was rewarded with a real time, 3-D view of what was being displayed on the tactical map. What Thrawn saw was what he was expecting. The entire fleet was pulling tight around the capital ships. They were trading space for overlapping fire. Even with the comms shut, he could imagine Admiral Hood taking unofficial control of the ships. The tactics were as human as they were smart. The goal was simple: No one gets through.

 **(Imperial Citadel)**

Vader's blood ran cold as he stepped through the door. A look down the passage told Vader that it was empty. There were no Royal guards or other guards to hinder his approach. It was an empty passage leading to the most important place he would go. Yet, only one man was there. Past those doors was the person that had broken Vader. Through death and destruction, lies and half truths, manipulation and calculating sympathy, he broken the man formerly known as Anakin an him reconstructed a monster. Now this monster was going to pay him back in full.

Behind him, Luke tilted his head slightly as he also stared down the passage. As his father continued his march forward, Luke took a deep, measured breath. Vader suddenly flooded the force with rage and hate. As they had fought their way through the Citadel, the Force had felt like a cold, wet blanket touching his skin. Now it felt as if someone was trying to smother him with it. Luke had finally managed to put the feeling out of his mind, when Vader spun around at the door and faced him.

"This is it," he declared, "Whatever happens next, this will end here."


End file.
